For more information on the conference and its outcomes click here

As much as we’d like to be sipping piña coladas on the beach, our appearance is strictly primarily business.

That’s because we’ll be sharing the stage with Microsoft® and software development firm Nova Limited as presenters at the Bermuda 2012 Data Management Conference. The event, hosted by Nova on March 6 and 7th^th, 2012, will address the problem of how organizations can control their ever-growing volumes of complex business data as well as do more with them.

dbaDIRECT Regional Manager Scott Smith will present on today’s database management challenges. He will explain how to meet demand for 24×365 support, manage multiple DBMS platforms, and keep pace with rapidly evolving technologies and the accelerating speed of business. From his talk, attendees will learn how to better leverage existing resources while improving overall support capabilities and service quality.

Other presentations will help organizations maximize IT investment to boost productivity and security. As well, attendees will learn how to leverage existing data storage to enable business intelligence (BI) for quicker, smarter, better decision making.

For more information on the Bermuda 2012 Data Management Conference, call us at 877-687-3227 ext. 3 or contact us online. And if you plan on attending, don’t forget to pack sunglasses and flip-flops.

As a remote database management services provider, dbaDIRECT recently attended Gartner Symposium/ITxpo 2011 with a special interest in such session topics as outsourcing, data and infrastructure management, mobility, cloud computing, and business intelligence. Our organizational mission is predicated on helping organizations manage and do more with their data, so these matters have particular relevancy to what we do.

What we learned from the symposium reinforces our ideas on database management and IT infrastructure outsourcing: organizations need a solid partner to help them meet the challenges of an ever increasing change rate.

Today’s data volumes and the tools and techniques to manage them are advancing at an astounding pace. Organizations that aren’t able to keep up will quickly be left behind by competitors able to leverage change to foster superior business intelligence.

Key Point: Partner with Your Remote DBA Services Provider

One of the highlight sessions at the symposium was a talk on outsourcing by Gartner analyst Linda Cohen. She emphasized that outsourcing routinely fosters bottom-line results: “In this new era, successful sourcing strategies will differentiate winners from losers.”

She underscored the term “partnership” to describe the approach organizations should use with the outsourcing firms they hire. She cautioned organizations to establish clear and realistic expectations in their outsourcing relationships and to avoid ad hoc sourcing strategies. Instead, she advised, “create a culture of collaboration” with your outsource partners.

As a remote database management services firm, we appreciated hearing this advice from Cohen, as it affirms the approach we’ve always employed. We consider each client relationship a “partnership,” with us fully invested in the client’s utmost success. Whether we are hired to fulfill a specific task or to provide comprehensive remote DBA consulting and management services, our focus is on providing the most useful and beneficial remote DBA services to the over one hundred organizations we serve in various industries throughout the country.

In fact, in 2010 Gartner recognized us as a “cool vendor”. Gartner honored us with this designation because it deemed us “a company that offers technologies or solutions that are innovative, impactful, and intriguing.” We aim for such high standards to ensure our clients get the most benefit from their partnerships with us.

Learn more about how we become Your Remote DBA Team.

Remote Database Management Fosters Business Intelligence

Business intelligence (BI) was another popular topic at Gartner Symposium/ITxpo 2011. New tools and techniques in database management are rapidly increasing the amount and type of real-time BI organizations can get out of their data.

The problem is, however, “business dashboards are everywhere, but poor design, alert fatigue and information glut threaten to overwhelm their potential benefits,” according to information from one of the sessions.

Other issues explored at the symposium included choosing the right BI platform among the growing number available on the market and “best practices for the development and support of BI, analytics and performance management (BAP) initiatives.” The sessions offered ideas and recommendations on how to address these issues.

Assimilating and following the suggestions, however, can be rather overwhelming for organizations struggling to simply manage the vast and growing volumes of data they accrue on a daily basis. With enormous resources tied up just in the administration of data, it becomes a challenge to then free up the resources necessary to manipulate that data in the most effective ways for enhanced business decision making.

Addressing these concerns, dbaDIRECT offers remote database management and consulting services. For organizations wishing to be able to dedicate more resources on BI, we can provide remote DBA services, with onsite or offsite, 24×7 database administration services and staffing. These services free up your internal staff to focus less on routine administrative tasks and more on high-level BI tasks.

Additionally, our database consulting and BI consulting services can help organizations identify and deploy the right BI solutions to provide them with the superior decision making they need to be leaders in their industries.

Mobile, Cloud, and Your Data

“The vast majority of organizations have ignored mobile BI due to the lack of usability of earlier mobile devices,” declares the information from one of the symposium sessions. “This is changing as the proliferation of smartphones and tablets with superior ease of use represents an inflection point.” Moreover, “like it or not, the cloud’s impact on analytics, business intelligence and performance management is formatively changing the way organizations source solutions.”

In fact, many of the sessions focused on advances in mobile and cloud computing. They made the clear statement that organizations not taking prompt and appropriate steps to adopt these innovations will struggle to keep up with their users’ needs: “The constant need of timely access to information from diverse sources including cloud data has driven the business to become more autonomous in managing data.” As well: “The explosion in personal mobile devices, widespread availability of cheap Internet capacity and new integrated communications systems are combining to create new opportunities for forward-thinking leaders.”

Is your organization ready to fully leverage these technologies? If you want to add mobile or cloud initiatives to your organization but are struggling with integrating them with your data administration or other needs, we can assist you. Mobile and cloud are hot trends, ignored or halfheartedly addressed to great risk to your organization.

Should you wish to make greater use of these technologies for BI or other purposes, we can definitely help. Call us at 1-877-687-3227, option 3, for a free consultation.

In particular, we heard a few things on a couple of Oracle’s most advanced database products—Exadata and the Exalogic Elastic Compute Cloud—that especially caught our attention. Over half of our client projects involve Oracle databases, and so the news we heard from a number of experts at OpenWorld on these products was especially pertinent to us as Oracle database consultants and, ergo, to our clients.

Oracle Exadata is Here—Are You Ready?

For one, Oracle is pushing the Exadata database machine as the imminent database solution for its customers. Exadata consolidates storage, servers, networking, and software into one pre-engineered machine, merging disparate servers and data stores into one centralized solution.
Exadata indeed does a tremendous job at helping organizations collect, store, process, and utilize ever-increasing volumes of data for superior business intelligence; however, migrating to Exadata poses some critical implementation and administrative challenges. Exadata consolidates the traditional means of managing Oracle database implementations via separate IT specialties, and so organizations using or considering Oracle must be sure to have the personnel with the right skills—a mix of database, storage, Linux, and UNIX expertise all rolled into one—available when making the transition to and utilizing Exadata.

Since Exadata was first introduced in 2008, we have been diligent in ensuring we have ample remote Oracle database administrators trained to the highest degree on all of the requisite Exadata skills. With Oracle increasingly pushing Exadata’s widespread adoption, we are more committed than ever to helping our clients take maximum advantage of its ability to handle massive amounts of data and provide superior business performance.

Learn how we help businesses do more with Oracle.

Here is a great video that illustrates Exadata’s tremendous benefits to organizations:

Larry Ellison on the Exalogic Elastic Compute Cloud

In his keynote speech at OpenWorld, Oracle CEO Larry Ellison introduced the Exalogic Elastic Compute Cloud (herein referred to as Exalogic), which he described as “a cloud in a box.” Exalogic is indeed a single open-system “box” that consolidates all of the hardware and standards-based software needed for high-performance execution of Java, Oracle, and other mission-critical enterprise applications on a private cloud platform.

Exalogic includes 30 servers, an InfiniBand network to enable the servers to talk with one another, a high-availability storage device, a virtual machine with a couple of guest operating systems, and all of the middleware needed to run and develop applications. It is a tremendously powerful platform that provides high performance, high availability, high reliability, and cost efficiency. It also works well with Exadata via the InfiniBand network and software enhancements to optimize data transfer between the systems.

Like Exadata, however, transitioning to Exalogic can be a challenge for an organization. It too requires a consolidation of disparate IT processes and skills. But the transition is well worth it because of the long-term performance improvements and savings it offers.

If you’re considering deployment of a private cloud, therefore, the Exalogic Elastic Compute Cloud solution is an excellent choice, especially if you already run an Oracle database environment. Moreover, our remote Oracle DBA and consulting services can make your migration to Exalogic—as well as Exadata—easy, safe, and pain-free. Socontact us if you are considering the transition or need assistance with an existing deployment.

Finally, here’s a great excerpt of Ellison discussing Exalogic and cloud computing at Oracle OpenWorld:

Learn how we help businesses do more with Oracle.

“Growth pushed by customer requests for new remote services continue to propel our approach forward,” said John Bostick, CEO and founder of dbaDIRECT. “Each time, we have been able to add a new innovation, pioneering the market.”

Other services under the ONguard umbrella include Continuous Service Assurance / Database (CSA/DB) and Continuous Service Assurance / Oracle eBusiness (CSA/EBS). CSA/OS continues the tradition of proven remote administration solutions from dbaDIRECT. It is an easy-to-implement systems administration, remote system monitoring and server maintenance service that supports the following operating systems with 24x7x365 remote system administration: Windows, Linux and Unix.

CSA/OS provides organizations with automated and optimized remote system administration of their operating system environments through remote system monitoring, system-level troubleshooting and execution of documented routine processes for organizations of any size—including small, medium and large enterprises. CSA/OS makes sure Windows, Unix and Linux server systems are running as they should be by finding and eliminating operating system administration problems before they disrupt operations, averting potentially devastating failures and giving organizations confidence in the reliability and performance of their IT systems.

“Continuous Service Assurance / Operating System is a cost-effective remote admin solution for Linux server system administration, Unix server administration and Windows server administration,” said Bruce Deacon, marketing manager of dbaDIRECT. “For over a decade, many C-level executives and IT managers have engaged us for our critical database administration and consulting services, and we continue to provide the same trusted, safe, easy and cost-effective service management approach in our operating system administration services. Supported by the ONguard Service Management Platform, CSA/OS is another value-added member of our family of world-class IT system administration services.”

Through its inclusion in the ONguard Service Management Platform, dbaDIRECT clients can obtain remote Linux server services, Unix system administration and system administration for Windows; all from a company selected in 2010 as a “Cool Vendor” by leading IT analyst firm Gartner, Inc. A cool vendor, according to Gartner, is “one that is innovative, interesting, and has or will have a business impact on the future of IT.”

As the leader in intelligent remote database and operating system administration services since 1999, dbaDIRECT has enabled companies of all sizes to obtain professional, 24×365 IT system administration services for a fraction of the price of hiring full-time employees or consultants. dbaDIRECT provides complete support for all major OS platforms, including remote system administration for Windows, Linux system

Businesses generally fail for two reasons: Starvation from lack of sales or indigestion from the burden of infrastructure. This program will focus on infrastructure, the mega trend toward remote infrastructure management, and the more specific trend toward remote database administration.

The hard fact is that business data is growing exponentially. It’s now doubling every 18 months while skilled IT talent to manage that growth is shrinking.

For more detail visit www.dbadirect.com

dbaDIRECT’s selection as a cool vendor comes at a time when companies are continuing to search for ways to keep costs under control, even as their data continues to grow. Remote database administration allows these companies to control their costs using a scalable support model. Most companies have found that the cost containment measures actually result in better support with dbaDIRECT’s 15 minute response times and 24×365 monitoring and maintenance.

About Gartner”s Cool Vendors Selection Process

Gartner”s listing does not constitute an exhaustive list of vendors in any given technology area, but rather is designed to highlight interesting, new and innovative vendors, products and services. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness of a particular purpose.

Gartner defines a cool vendor as a company that offers technologies or solutions that are: Innovative, enable users to do things they couldn”t do before; Impactful, have, or will have, business impact (not just technology for the sake of technology); Intriguing, have caught Gartner”s interest or curiosity in approximately the past six months.

The innovative dataALERT Monitor is the ONguard module designed to enable advanced monitoring using simplified, pre-defined thresholds. The ONguard dataVIEW Dashboard provides an at-a-glance snapshot of only the data needed to have a complete understanding of the database. These modules are the latest example of dbaDIRECT’s commitment to simplifying the customer experience through advanced automation.

CEO John Bostick explained that as a remote dba provider, it is important for the company to provide the customer the proper tools to stay connected to dbaDIRECT’s activity and the data environment. Bostick added, “Data is continuing to increase at an alarming rate. Most management tools and outsourcing services just pile on more data and processing overhead. Our goal is to help our customers sort through the data and present them what they need to gain quick, meaningful insights.” The results, so far, seem to indicate that customers are appreciative of their reduced data tax.

dbaDIRECT is a pioneer and leader in the field of Data Infrastructure Management (Data IM™). Since 1998, the company has defined the Data IM™ market with its scalable, automated processes and expert services that enable companies to focus on higher-value IT alignment. dbaDIRECT provides complete support for all major database platforms, including Oracle, DB2, Sybase, SQL Server, and MySQL. The company manages thousands of databases for customers worldwide, many of which are Fortune 1000 and Forbes Private 500 firms. Their international Data Operations Center is headquartered in Greater Cincinnati.

Upgrades can be a major resource burden and inconvenience, resulting in downtime, functional changes and compatibility issues. “Organizations are unique and have different challenges depending on their IT environment and their internal capabilities,” explained John Bostick, CEO of dbaDIRECT. “This is why we are offering two distinct Upgrade Services: Planning & Analysis and Migration.” The Planning & Analysis Services give organizations a structured project approach to managing the upgrade, analyzing potential issues and creating the appropriate planning documentation. Migration Services, on the other hand, deliver efficient, cost-effective and off-peak hour processes to carry out the upgrade. Bostick added that while many organizations are looking for one service or the other, several of dbaDIRECT’s customers rely on the company to execute the full upgrade process. Having upgraded thousands of database instances, organizations can benefit from dbaDIRECT’s structured methodology and tools that the company brings to each the upgrade process.

dbaDIRECT’s core offering, Continuous Service Assurance, enables data infrastructure operations to be managed as a 24X365 service. Companies across industries benefit from the efficiencies gained, continuous coverage and access to expert resources for value-added database projects. dbaDIRECT”s broad appeal stems from its position as one of the only service providers that can manage and upgrade most major database platforms including Oracle, DB2, Sybase, SQL Server, and MySQL remote services.

dbaDIRECT is a pioneer and leader in the field of Data Infrastructure Management (Data IM™). Since 1998, the company has defined the Data IM™ market with its scalable set of automation tools, processes and expert services that enables companies to focus on higher-value IT alignment. dbaDIRECT provides complete support for all major database platforms, including Oracle, DB2, Sybase, SQL Server, and MySQL. The company manages thousands of databases for customers worldwide, many of which are Fortune 1000 and Forbes Private 500 firms. Their international Data Operations Center is headquartered in Greater Cincinnati.

The directCHECK provides a comprehensive reference guide to the health of a database. By evaluating data and performance trends over a period of time, the entire database is assessed as opposed to the usual ad-hoc observation or alerting. Performance improvement recommendations are designed to be implemented by internal resources or through dbaDIRECT’s ONdemand Services. The company has found that organizations can achieve tangible improvements through such a process.

Bostick commented that combining automation with optimized expert resources enables dbaDIRECT to provide the service at an affordable price. This combination is built upon the ONguard 2.0 toolset, which facilitates efficient processes and knowledge-dissemination.

dbaDIRECT’s core offering, Continuous Service Assurance, enables data infrastructure operations to be managed as a 24X365 service. Companies across industries benefit from the efficiencies gained, continuous coverage and the reliability of the company’s expert resources. dbaDIRECT”s broad appeal stems from its position as one of the only service providers that can manage most major database platforms including Oracle, DB2, Sybase, SQL Server, and MySQL.

dbaDIRECT is a pioneer and leader in the field of Data Infrastructure Management (Data IM™). Since 1998, dbaDIRECT has defined the Data IM™ market with its scalable set of automation tools, processes and expert services that enables companies to focus on higher-value IT alignment. The company provides complete support for all major database platforms, including Oracle, DB2, Sybase, SQL Server, and MySQL. dbaDIRECT manages thousands of databases for customers worldwide, many of which are Fortune 1000 and Forbes Private 500 firms.

Bostick said large enterprises are increasingly recognizing the repeatable and sustainable value of data infrastructure management through a managed service provider (MSP). He said IT executives from Fortune 1000 or larger companies are increasingly comfortable in seeking out new managed-service capabilities, such as data infrastructure management, from potential partners, no matter where they are located.

“When world-class processes, methodologies and systems are in place, and can be cost-effectively scaled to meet the growing infrastructure demands of business, then location is solved, and a managed service provider can be outsourced, in-sourced or near-sourced,” said Bostick. “CIOs today would simply rather be working on strategic, revenue-driving IT initiatives.”

The number of new customers is important, Bostick said, but what is more significant is that the new Q4-2007 additions represent a 40 percent increase in annualized contract value, over the company”s previous highest quarter.

dbaDIRECT currently manages more than 3,000 corporate databases. Data infrastructure as a managed service is suited for data-intensive companies in the financial services, retail, utility and consumer packaged goods industries. dbaDIRECT”s broad appeal stems from its position as one of the only service providers that can manage most major database platforms: Oracle, UDB DB2, Sybase, and SQL Server, MySQL, and DB2 for the Z Series Mainframes.

Data IM(TM) (data infrastructure as a managed service) is a scaleable set of automation, processes and expert services that enables companies to focus on higher-value, close-to-the-business IT alignment. dbaDIRECT has been a pioneer and leader in the Data IM market since 1998.

“The grant we received will provide valuable resources in our mission to help data-intensive companies manage the information that drives business growth and innovation here in northern Kentucky, across the nation and around the global economy,” said John Bostick, CEO of dbaDIRECT.

Bostick founded dbaDIRECT and has developed the firm into a leader in remote monitoring and automated management of remote dba services. Bostick is a recognized industry authority on Managed Services, who recently spoke at the International Conference on Information Technology for Financial Services (ICITFS) 2007 at Zhejiang University in Hangzhou, China. The topic of his speech – “Building Trust Networks through a Commitment to Intelligent Process and Service Design” – is also the subject of his recent columns for various technology and leadership publications.

“Trust in your technology networks and your market community is a critical success factor in today’s global economy,” Bostick said. “Trust networks are the engine of entrepreneurial initiatives that generate new knowledge, new high-value jobs and economic resiliency.”

dbaDIRECT currently manages more than 3,000 corporate databases. Data infrastructure as a managed service is suited for data-intensive companies in the financial services, retail, utility and consumer packaged goods industries. dbaDIRECT’s broad appeal is because it is one of the only service providers that can manage most major database platforms: Oracle, UDB DB2, Sybase, SQL Server, MySQL, and DB2 for the Z Series Mainframes.

Data IM (data infrastructure as a managed service) is a scaleable set of automation, processes and expert services that enables companies to focus on higher-value, close-to-the-business IT alignment. dbaDIRECT has been a pioneer and leader in the Data IM market since 1998.

· Lary Runge – Chief Operating Officer, COO

· Rashmi Kansakar, Ken Roth and Brad Rowen have been named technical managers.

· Phil Roundtree and Jerry Hinkle have been named customer technical managers.

· Bryan Fleckenstein, Kelly Kroger, Morgan Jung and John Sutton have been promoted to associate database technicians.

· Steve Hunter has been promoted to monitoring technician.

“These promotions reflect the long-term dividends of investing in our internal talent base to achieve our strategic growth objectives,” said John Bostick, CEO of dbaDIRECT. “Our core asset is savvy individuals with initiative and know-how. We will continue to move up our talent through the executive, managerial and technical levels to service our customers’ growing needs.”

dbaDIRECT has hired 10 new employees since January. An additional seven people have been brought on at its affiliate, Ascendum, in Bangalore, India, during the same period of time.

dbaDIRECT currently manages more than 3,000 corporate databases. Data infrastructure as a managed service is suited for data-intensive companies in the financial services, retail, utility and consumer packaged goods industries. Data IM is a scaleable set of automation, processes and expert services that enables companies to focus on higher-value, close-to-the-business IT alignment. dbaDIRECT has been a leader in the Data IM market since 1998.

Vorholt said the development of accessAUDIT is a direct response to reporting requirements contained in Sarbanes-Oxley, HIPPA and other regulations. He said the architecture “fixes” a natural security “question” about remote administration of large organizations’ mission-critical databases.

“Our clients’ data systems vary, so their requirements for security are variable,” Vorholt said. “We offer a standardized approach to security reporting instead of customers having to create something new every time. We view accessAUDIT as a complexity-aversion tool.”

accessAUDIT is a combination of RSA SecureID™ two-factor authentication, a CITRIX® presentation server for controlled application access and a security agent from Cisco Systems for access auditing. Client auditors will be able to review dbaDIRECT access to the supported environment and correlate the access to work tickets thereby providing access compliance documentation.

The ONguard 2.0 platform enables dbaDIRECT to provide data infrastructure management remotely to customers in a repeatable, standardized manner with a best practices approach.

“With ONguard 2.0, a customer’s request will be instantly routed to the best possible worldwide resource dbaDIRECT can provide,” said John Bostick, CEO of dbaDIRECT. “ONguard 2.0 will find the right person at the right time based on availability, based on skills, based on severity of the problem and, ultimately, based on what needs to done — to ensure issues are handled in the best possible way.”

Bostick said the other major advancement with ONguard 2.0 is giving clients the ability to choose standard operating procedures from a set of dbaDIRECT Best Practices for data infrastructure management or define their own SOPs to fit their specific work business rules and work flow. Too often, Bostick explained, companies rely on impromptu or ad hoc data management activities rather than establishing SOPs. “These client-defined SOPs will be seamlessly integrated into the system in a documented fashion,” Bostick said. “When a certain type of work ticket comes in, the customer-defined SOPs will be engaged and our people will do steps 1, 2, 3, 4 exactly the same way every time.”

Bostick added that ONguard 2.0 will eliminate the impact of remote dba administrators moving from company to company or project to project taking the “SOPs in their brain” with them. New ONguard 2.0 features will improve efficiency and consistency and enable dbaDIRECT to apply its expertise across its customer base by assisting clients with the development of SOPs.

In addition to upgrades in workflow/resource management and embedding customer knowledge and standard operating procedures, ONguard 2.0 features refinements of its primary functions, including:

· Message Handling · Service Level Management · Automated Escalations · Customer Service Visualization · API Agents · Graphical Trending Data (through recently upgraded clientDIRECT® Portal 2.0) · “Digital DBA”

“Using Web-based automation puts the customer in greater control of their relationship with dbaDIRECT,” said John Bostick, CEO of dbaDIRECT. “Efficient communications only increase the value of our relationships with our customers.”

On the new client DIRECT Portal 2.0 home page, customers now will be able to; Scan status of tickets in the queue quickly for instant management updates, Provide instant links or attachments into tickets for more detailed, granular information,Perform fast, simple, intuitive navigation of the entire portal and see graphical trending information for quick weekly, monthly and yearly database analysis.

Bostick said one of the primary advantages of the new service portal is the greater ability to quickly and accurately create work tickets, along with service scheduling using parameters chosen by the client. Clients also can customize Standard Operating Procedures to their performance specifications.

Other enhancements include
When a ticket is created, the last ten tickets are displayed to avoid work duplication. New tickets enter directly into the company’s proprietary ONguard® workflow system. The ticket screen captures all necessary data – contacts, severity, description, and attachments. Severity levels are assigned to all tickets: Critical, High, Medium, Low, OK (which means documentation only.)

In the area of reporting, client DIRECT 2.0 provides new reporting tools that add value and save time:
Trend Reports – the ability to produce graphical displays of monitored parameters over select periods of time for trend analysis.
Quick Reports – the ability to drill down to a particular day and show parameter data on an hourly basis with actual data points.

“For new clients, there is a minimal learning curve with this portal; the biggest improvement will be in automating repetitive low-value communications and maximizing high-value strategic communication,” Bostick explained. “There is meaningful information and much more of it at a user’s fingertips that’s easy to use. You no longer need to be a skilled remote dba administrator to get where you need to go.”

Vorholt said dbaDIRECT’s decision to add MySQL to the list of platforms it supports is the result of its rapid adoption among corporate IT departments.
“The combination of Linux and MySQL is providing major corporations with a means to cost effectively manage many distributed locations,” Vorholt explained. “dbaDIRECT’s ability to support this environment reduces a company’s need to maintain in-house expertise. We can manage high-end Oracle systems, as well as reduced-cost MySQL distributed environments – within the same framework and process.”

dbaDIRECT offers managed services for four major database platforms: Oracle, UDB DB2, Sybase, and MYSQL Server. As with these platforms, Vorholt said dbaDIRECT will provide MySQL service and support on an around-the-clock basis, including on-demand technical expertise and MySQL software lifecycle management (including patches and upgrades).
“Several of our corporate clients use MySQL for various projects so adding this capability is another way we are making data infrastructure management easier for our clients,” Vorholt said.

A significant portion of dbaDIRECT customers run SQL Server databases. These customers leave the database to dbaDIRECT so that they can focus on their business. Whether you are running SQL Server 2000 or need to upgrade to the latest version, dbaDIRECT is your source for SQL Server expertise and operations. We have a team dedicated to remotely administering SQL Server databases and ensuring 24X365 operation of your production environment.

These companies have chosen dbaDIRECT to monitor and optimize the performance of their mission critical enterprise databases, which frees resources for higher-value business IT initiatives.
Go2Call – A supplier of a complete suite of hosted international VoIP solutions to carriers and resellers, broadband service providers, ISPs, new VoIP license holders, call shops and other distributors.

ICG Commerce – A procurement services provider committed to reducing procurement costs for customers through a comprehensive range of offerings, including sourcing, savings implementation, transaction management, and category management solutions.

Galerie – A wholesale distributor of innovative confectionery gifts.

International Shipbuilding Corp. – A water transportation specialist engaged in various types of waterborne freight transportation, including LASH (Lighter Aboard SHip) carriage, pure car/truck carrier services, roll-on/roll-off, breakbulk and bulk carrier services, domestic coastwise services, and rail-ferry transportation services.

Lake Michigan College – A 2-year community college offering associate degrees, certificates, and a wide range of continuing education and business and industry training to communities in southwestern Michigan.

Ingram Digital Ventures – An digital fulfillment services operating group of Ingram Industries Inc., one of America’s largest privately held companies that also has groups for diversified businesses in distribution, marine transportation and aggregate supply.

The addition of these six new customers in the third quarter represents an 11 percent increase in new customers year-to-date. dbaDIRECT currently manages more than 3,000 corporate databases. Data infrastructure as a managed service is suited for data-intensive companies in the financial services, retail, utility and consumer packaged goods industries. dbaDIRECT’s broad appeal is because it is one of the only service providers who can manage all five major database platforms: Oracle, UDB DB2, Sybase, Informix and SQL Server.

Data IM (data infrastructure as a managed service) is a scaleable set of automation, processes and expert services that enables companies to focus on higher-value, close-to-the-business IT alignment. dbaDIRECT has been a pioneer and leader in the Data IM market since 1998.

“For a entrepreneurial firm like ours, winning a growth award four years in a row, indicates that our business vision is precise and the trend toward managing corporate databases as a service remains strong and stable,” said John Bostick, President and CEO of dbaDIRECT. “Increasingly market-leading innovative companies are seeking ways to selectively-source their technology infrastructure to best-practice suppliers to better focus on their core-brand capabilities.

Founded in 1999, dbaDirect now manages over 3,000 corporate databases for over 80 large and mid-market customers. dbaDIRECT managed service offering optimizes large corporate database assets for performance, stability and resiliency. Customers are increasingly turning to managed service providers to mitigate the trend of growing shortages in the IT labor market caused by baby-boom demographics and the 24×7 requirement for instantaneous global data access.

“The growing IT labor shortage is not going away because the shortage is now global. Our solution is a rapidly scaleable combination of automated business intelligence, processes and service expertise, that is attractive to our clients and prospects.” Bostick adds “We have been winning against the offshore labor arbitrage model, because our model addresses the labor shortage issue with increased productivity through best practices.”

dbaDIRECT direct employs over 80 highly skilled business technologist in the Greater Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky area and is a Founding Sponsor of the Infrastructure Management Institute at Northern Kentucky University. The IMI at NKU is a global initiative between the University and Corporations to collaborate on technology infrastructure research, training and leadership opportunities.

These companies have chosen dbaDIRECT to monitor and optimize the performance of their mission critical enterprise databases, which frees resources for higher-value business IT initiatives:

Affinity Group Inc. – AGI and our affiliated companies serve the safety, security, comfort, and convenience needs of the North American recreational vehicle market.

eLynx, Ltd – An innovator of e-services that transform costly paper-intensive business processes into secure electronic operations. eLynx’s solutions enable businesses to improve workflow and deliver dramatic cost savings by automating paper-intensive processes that quickly integrate with existing business systems.

FCI – A leading designer and manufacturer of high-quality, innovative connectors for a wide range of consumer and industrial applications. FCI has over 3,500 employees in 30 countries.

FBMC – A renowned third-party administrator of Flexible Benefit solutions. With 30 years of experience in total benefits administration, FBMC is an industry leader in benefits plan design and enrollment.

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey – A not-for-profit organization headquartered in Newark, is the state”s largest health insurer. The organization provides individuals and employers in New Jersey with convenient access to quality health care, wherever they live or work.

Making everlasting Memories – A progressive memory recording and publishing company, which preserves and publishes to the Internet or other current technology, lifelong memories through stories and images.

Natexis Bleichroeder – A multinational investment bank that provides its institutional clients with brokerage services, order execution, share lending-borrowing, electronic order transmission and corporate finance. It also plays a significant role in the primary market.

Radio Shack Corporation – One of the nation’s most trusted consumer electronics specialty retailers and a growing provider of a variety of retail support services. The company operates a vast network of sales channels, including: more than 6,000 company and dealer stores; over 100 RadioShack locations in Mexico and Canada; and nearly 800 wireless kiosks.

The addition of these eight new customers in the second quarter represents a 23% increase in new business year-to-date. dbaDIRECT currently manages more than 3,000 corporate databases. Data infrastructure as a managed service is suited for data-intensive companies in the financial services, retail, utility and the consumer packaged goods industries. dbaDIRECT’s broad appeal is because it is one of the only service providers who can manage all five major database platforms: Oracle, UDB DB2, Sybase, Informix and SQL Server)

Data IM (data infrastructure as a managed service) is a scaleable set of automation, processes and expert services that enables companies to focus on higher-value, close-to-the-business IT alignment. dbaDIRECT has been a pioneer and leader in the Data IM market since 1998.

Randy Sebastian has been promoted to the new position of Vice President of Service Delivery, and Diane Sichel has been promoted to the new position of Director of Client Services. Sebastian and Sichel will be responsible for customer service operations, as CTO Mark Vorholt sharpens his focus on expanding dbaDIRECT’s innovative technology base and rolling out new managed service offerings.

“These leaders within our organization understand the growing needs of our customers, and the scaleable capabilities of our people and our technology,” dbaDIRECT CEO John Bostick said of the promotions. “With this new alignment we are poised for the era of ‘Big Information’ that is before us, with new product and service offerings that are second to none.”

dbaDIRECT remotely monitors and manages more than 3,000 corporate databases for Fortune 1000 and Private 500 companies and is a pioneer in the field of “Data IM” – Data Infrastructure as a Managed Service.

“The promotions of Sebastian and Sichel are in response to ‘organic growth’ from existing customers and continuing growth from new customer relationships,” Bostick explained. “Vorholt’s refined responsibilities are intended as a response to market opportunities for innovation, especially managed services opportunities in infrastructure management.”

“With this new alignment we are poised for the era of ‘Big Information’ that is before us, with new product and service offerings that are second to none.” dbaDIRECT remotely monitors and manages more than 3,000 corporate databases for Fortune 1000 and Private 500 companies and is a pioneer in the field of “Data IM” – Data Infrastructure as a Managed Service.

“The promotions of Sebastian and Sichel are in response to ‘organic growth’ from existing customers and continuing growth from new customer relationships,” Bostick explained. “Vorholt’s refined responsibilities are intended as a response to market opportunities for innovation, especially managed services opportunities in infrastructure management.”

PAGE TWO: dbaDIRECT Promotes for Growth and Development “This is an exciting time for our company,” Vorholt said. “dbaDIRECT is competing every day against large inshore and offshore outsourcers and winning, because we are a proven selective-sourcing alternative, with better technology, processes and people ” About dbaDIRECTÒ dbaDIRECT is a pioneer and leader in the field of Data Infrastructure Management and is the only company to provides complete support for all major database platforms (Oracle, DB2, UDB, Sybase, Informix, SQL Server) using the ONguard IMÒ process.

dbaDIRECT manages thousands of databases for nearly 100 clients worldwide, half of which are Fortune 1000 and Forbes Private 500 firms. The company’s international Data Operations Center is headquartered in Greater Cincinnati.

Some of the new customers include: Guardian Insurance, M Financial Group, Brookstone, Cornerstone Brands, Servicemaster, SubcriberMail, ASAP Software, Texas Farm Bureau and Mohegan Sun. The addition of 14 new customers in the past four months represents a 21% gain for dbaDIRECT – nearly half being Fortune 1000, Private 500 companies.

dbaDIRECT currently manages over 3,000 databases. Data infrastructure as a managed service is suited for data intensive companies in the financial services, retail, utility and the consumer packaged goods industries. dbaDIRECT’s broad appeal is because it is one of the only service provider who can manage all five major database platforms.

According to dbaDIRECT’s CEO John Bostick, this strong demand signals a tipping point, as todays’ CIO’s understand the value and benefits of managing data infrastructure as a service. “It’s a combination of many factors that are pushing this trend – the IT talent shortage, explosive data volumes, the shift to “transactional sourcing ” models, and the realities of 24×7 global markets. Operational excellence of mission critical systems by a managed service provider enables, CIO’s to realign talent and resources for higher-value objectives.”

Data IM (data infrastructure as a managed service) is a scaleable set of automation, processes and expert services that enables companies to focus on higher-value, close to the business IT alignment. dbaDIRECT has been a pioneer and leader in the Data IM market since 1998.

Ferguson’s responsibilities are aligned with the Office of the Economic Initiatives at NKU, which is focused on regional economic development and job creation. As an economic engine in Northern Kentucky, NKU is leveraging their research, training and facility assets with public and private technology companies, associations and foundations to be catalysts for infrastructure management innovation and best practices.

Regarding the appointment of Ferguson, Robert Farrell, VP of NKU’s Office of Economic Initiatives stated, “Ferguson is an industry acknowledged strategist and leader in emerging technology. With more than 15 years as SVP of Research & Development at Computer Associates, we are pleased and fortunate to have Ferguson on-board.”

According to Ferguson, an Institute can bring the industry to new levels of integration, “Through the IMI, the entire infrastructure management industry will benefit and grow from one central source. We need a time and place to cooperate – clearly resolving the needs of inter-operability will lead to a larger more competitive playing field.”

NKU’s Office of Economic Initiatives helped develop the concept of the IMI from discussions with technology businesses in the Northern Kentucky and Greater Cincinnati area. Universities are one of the critical drivers of regional economic growth and job creation. The IMI will provide a variety of resources including conferences, workshops, task forces, web site, web casts, user groups, expert/consultants, networking opportunities, certification and curriculum development for individuals and businesses working in the IT, IM and ITIL environments.

John Bostick, CEO for dbaDIRECT, a database infrastructure management company added, “ The big IT question for the next decade is – What’s your Infrastructure Strategy? The CEO, the CFO and the CIO need to find an answer that creates business value, is affordable and works. The IMI will be a place to find that answer.”

PAGE TWO: Timothy C. Ferguson – IMI

About Northern Kentucky University:

Northern Kentucky University is a major metropolitan institution, enrolling more than 14,000 undergraduate, graduate and law students. Founded in 1968, NKU is located in the Greater Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky area. The university offers nearly 60 baccalaureate degrees, 11 master’s programs as well as a J.D. through the Salmon P. Chase College of Law.

NKU is a national model of civic engagement and economic development initiatives. Corporate and University partnerships include: The Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement, the Fifth/Third Entrepreneurial Center, Metropolitan Education and Training Services Center, the new Infrastructure Management Institute at NKU and the future focused College of Informatics.

Tim Ferguson, former SVP of Research and Development for Computer Associates and the recently appointed Executive Director of the Infrastructure Management Institute at Northern Kentucky University agrees, “Infrastructure Management as a high-value engine of growth and job creation will happen where entrepreneurial ideas, research, talent, capital and corporate and civic support converge. It can happen in the Midwest of the U.S. or it can happen on the other side of the globe – the choice is ours.”

Since dbaDIRECT has developed Data Infrastructure Management, (Data IM) growth has been rapid and steady. dbaDIRECT manages over 2,500 corporate databases, for more than 50 Fortune 1000, Private 500 companies. dbaDIRECT monitors and manages databases in North America, Europe and South America. The business and technology model is highly automated and quickly scaleable. As a result of this growth – year-to-date dbaDIRECT has seen a 28% increase in employment of highly-skilled, high-value, technology jobs.

Jerry McElhatton former CIO of MasterCard International sees Infrastructure Management playing a part in the global financial services market as inevitable “It’s not a question of if, but when – banks are screaming for a new paradigm to manage data and technology infrastructure. Just as banks, insurers, and brokerages have evolved into a rich infrastructure of financial services – technology will evolve to a rich infrastructure of managed services”.

Cincinnati, OH (Business Wire) dbaDIRECT the pioneer and leader in the field of Data Infrastructure as a Managed Service today announced a partnership with BMC Software to deliver BMC® Managed Services for DBA . Customers will now have the option to purchase BMC Performance Manager software with a traditional software license from BMC, or as a newly offered managed service from BMC and dbaDIRECT.

Responding to growing customer demand for database administration capabilities, coupled with diminishing IT resources, the partnership provides customers another way to manage the overall expense of database management. Using BMC Managed Services and dbaDIRECT, customers can increase operational efficiency and improve service delivery by focusing resources on business growth, not infrastructure maintenance. BMC Managed Services offers the full compliment of BMC DBA solutions, delivered with the expertise of dbaDirect for quick, cost effective results.

“dbaDIRECT is a proven provider of database administration as a managed service, using our BMC Performance Manager for Databases and Smart DBA software solutions,” said Jay Gardner, vice president and general manager, On Demand Business Unit, BMC. “Together, BMC and dbaDirect offer customers the right combination of technology, expertise, and service necessary to successfully implement database management as a managed service or traditional license.”

dbaDIRECT currently monitors and manages over 2,500 databases for Fortune 1000Private 500 firms including – financial institutions, national retailers, consumer package brand manufactures and public institutions. dbaDIRECT’s service reach is global, providing Data IM services in Europe, South America and Asia.

PAGE TWO: BMC Software Partners With dbaDIRECT

“BMC is driving an important trend in enterprise software as a service and they are a positive catalyst in the enterprise business environment,” according to John Bostick, CEO of dbaDIRECT. “BMC Managed Services helps provide clarity to all C-level executives, making it clear that the IT infrastructure can be a critical pay-as-you-go utility further aligning business for scaleable growth or market fluxuation.”

Under the agreement, dbaDIRECT will manage the BMC Performance Manager for Databases service on an annual or multi-year basis. All licenses, updates, monitoring, maintenance and implementation for database performance and stability will be covered through seemless service level agreements.

BMC Performance Manager for Databases enables companies to determine the status of their databases and navigate through data and graphs, quickly identifying and correcting performance issues. It proactively assists customers in resolving problems and provides analysis information for root-cause diagnosis.

“dbaDIRECT is a proven provider of database administration as a managed service, using our BMC Performance Manager for Databases and SmartDBA® software solutions,” said Jay Gardner, vice president and general manager, On Demand Business Unit, BMC. “Together, BMC and dbaDirect offer customers the right combination of technology, expertise, and service necessary to successfully implement database management as a managed service or traditional license.”

dbaDIRECT currently monitors and manages over 2,500 databases for Fortune 1000Private 500 firms including – financial institutions, national retailers, consumer package brand manufactures and public institutions. dbaDIRECT’s service reach is global, providing Data IM services in Europe, South America and Asia.

PAGE TWO: BMC Software Partners With dbaDIRECT

“BMC is driving an important trend in enterprise software as a service and they are a positive catalyst in the enterprise business environment,” according to John Bostick, CEO of dbaDIRECT. “BMC Managed Services helps provide clarity to all C-level executives, making it clear that the IT infrastructure can be a critical pay-as-you-go utility further aligning business for scaleable growth or market fluxuation.”

Under the agreement, dbaDIRECT will manage the BMC Performance Manager for Databases service on an annual or multi-year basis. All licenses, updates, monitoring, maintenance and implementation for database performance and stability will be covered through seemless service level agreements.

BMC Performance Manager for Databases enables companies to determine the status of their databases and navigate through data and graphs, quickly identifying and correcting performance issues. It proactively assists customers in resolving problems and provides analysis information for root-cause diagnosis.

The Statement on Auditing Standards, 70 (SAS-70) is an internationally recognized auditing standard developed with the AICPA ensuring that a service organization has undergone an in-depth audit of its control activities, including controls over information technology and IT-related processes. For more information see www.sas70.com.

The SAS-70 standard provides proof from an impartial third-party that an organization has implemented the policies and processes that keep its information secure, stable and safe to government compliance standards such as Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, 2002. Type II compliance means that not only are those policies and processes in place but the company has a proven track record of performing with those controls.

Standards such as SAS-70 have become critical in the wake of the Sarbanes-Oxley, which created significant legal penalties for publicly traded companies who lacked sufficient control standards, not only for their financial information, but for their vendor processes.

According to John Bostick, CEO of dbaDIRECT, “This is another benchmark for our company and a value-added process for our customers. An SAS-70 Type II audit assures them that as a trusted service provider, our controls and safeguards are adequate, in place and fully tested.”

Bostick added, “It is critical that service providers support the SAS-70 compliance if they are working with publicly traded corporations. Our customers including Best Buy, Capital One, Alberto-Culver, Cinergy, LCCA, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, Lexington Home Brands and Big Lots demand it.”

According to Bostick one of the key drivers for his company’s growth has been through existing clients. Data Infrastructure Management needs have grown at such a fast rate that dbaDIRECT’s add-on contracts to contract renewals have more than quadrupled – an increase of 371% in the past three years. The growth of data volumes is best illustrated by the number of databases that dbaDIRECT now manages. A year ago, dbaDIRECT managed just under 900 databases. Today that number has more than doubled, to over 2,100 databases. Bostick reported that in the past three years, dbaDIRECT has also seen it’s business more than double at a 107% growth rate, as major corporations look to manage their database infrastructure costs, while continuing to increase their service and performance levels.

PAGE TWO: dbaDirect Inc. Corporate Data Volumes Drive Quadruple-Digit Growth…

“This is a sign of business expansion going forward, addressing strategic data initiatives such as data warehousing, business intelligence, enterprise application integration, systems enhancement, and new systems development.” Bostick said. “By using managed services for their Data Infrastructure needs, companies can attack these key business initiatives strategically. Our customers are not being held back by low-level daily administrative tasks that otherwise take their focus away from the bigger strategic issues they must address in order to remain competitive in today’s global marketplace.”

“The success of dbaDIRECT just reinforces the fact that CIOs at large companies in the U.S. realize that Data Infrastructure as a managed service is an innovation that is critical to the success of their enterprise’s business and IT alignment strategy,” Bostick said. “It enables them to manage costs, increase service, and refocus their technology resources on more strategic, high-value activities.”

ONguard IM^® is dbaDIRECT’s scalable, automated, process and service architecture that delivers 24×365, on-demand support for enterprise data infrastructure. “ONguard IM^® enables our customers to move quickly toward high-value, innovative strategies that bring technology closer to the business and away from lower-value database monitoring and management,” according to Mr. Bostick. “The demand curve for data volumes and usability is hitting the limits of thinly stretched IT staffs to deliver. A scalable managed service like ONguard IM^® enables CIOs and their IT staffs to quickly adapt to market conditions and add value as their businesses expand.”

Mr. Hennigan brings extensive experience in articulating the value proposition for large corporate accounts. He has effectively communicated the value proposition of professional business services, brand and corporate identity, design solutions and technology. As a design communication consultant to a large journalism foundation, Mr. Hennigan articulated the message of strategic investment in higher education and career development for journalist and journalism students.

Mr. Hennigan’s responsibilities at dbaDirect, are a direct extension of his experience and expertise. According to Lary Runge, VP Marketing for dbaDirect “ Data volumes and complexity are growing exponentially. DBA resources are not going to scale at this level, if at all. Data IM is what leading companies are turning to so that they can manage costs, increase service, and refocus technical resources on higher value activities. Mr. Hennigan understands the implications and the opportunities of this paradigm shift; having him on-board will create a synergy between our message and this new emerging market.”

“dbaDIRECT gives us confidence that our data infrastructure will be available 24×365 to meet the demands of our business,” said Big Lots CIO John Zavada. “With dbaDIRECT’s ONguard IM services, we are able to dedicate more of our IT resources to strategic initiatives that drive innovation, knowledge, and value.”

“Our ONguard IM services manage the data infrastructure so IT leaders can invest more time with the business and their new initiatives,” said dbaDIRECT CEO John Bostick.

About Big Lots
Big Lots, Inc. (www.biglots.com) is the nation”s largest broadline closeout retailer with annual revenues exceeding $4 billion. Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, Big Lots operates more than 1,500 retail stores serving 46 states. Five regional closeout distribution centers ranging in size from 1 million to 3 million square feet and two furniture distribution centers provide the company’s stores with brand-name products from more than 3,000 manufacturers. Big Lots offers merchandise on average at 20 to 40 percent below most discount retailers and up to 70 percent below conventional retailers. Founded in 1967, the company employs more than 45,000 associates across the U.S. By creating excitement with brand-name closeouts and bargains through a unique shopping experience, Big Lots meets the needs of customers by providing an assortment of merchandise including consumables, seasonal products, furniture and home, housewares, toys, and gifts. Big Lots, a Fortune 500 company, is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol BLI.

ONguard IM’s advanced integration of automation, technology, processes, and architecture enables dbaDIRECT to provide reliable, cost-effective Data IM services on a 24×365 basis. Leveraging ONguard IM, dbaDIRECT identifies and fixes potential infrastructure issues before they become problems while ensuring nonstop availability and peak performance. With ONguard IM, companies can redirect internal resources to better leverage enterprise data in high-value strategic business initiatives.

“As IT comes under ever increasing pressure to do more for less, ONguard IM offers one of those rare opportunities to significantly boost service while cutting costs and refocusing technical resources on higher value enterprise initiatives,” says dbaDIRECT CEO John Bostick. “Companies turn to us to manage their data infrastructure, while they refocus internal resources on more strategic data-intense initiatives such as new systems, application integration, and business intelligence. Within five years companies will routinely turn to infrastructure management service providers just as today they get electricity from the power company. Companies want to manage and leverage their data, not manage their infrastructures. With ONguard IM, we are once again out in front with the premier solution in one of the hottest new technology markets.”

ONguard IM serves the rapidly growing global infrastructure management market valued at over $86 billion, an area of interest to IT organizations as well as the business press and industry analysts. Other infrastructure management services are also expanding in adjacent markets such as network management and security monitoring. Since its founding in 1999, dbaDIRECT has provided the premier solution for Data IM services.

“In the past, outsourcing was about cost, cost, cost. In this new generation of outsourcing, the customer has realized that quality of service is the true value-add in the marketplace,” said John Bostick, president and CEO, dbaDIRECT. “Our recent SAS 70 compliance is just one more reason why customers are choosing dbaDIRECT as their data management outsourcing partner.”

About SAS 70
For information about the Statement on Auditing Standards (SAS) No. 70, developed by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), please visit www.sas70.com.

“The mainframe is far from dead,” Bostick explained. “There are three reasons: One, the cost of mainframe computing is too attractive; two, IBM recently has invested $100 million in z-platform improvements; and, three, the open-source Linux operating system can run on mainframes, along with five other operating systems.”

Independent research into the mainframe market supports Bostick’s assertions. Last year, a survey of 135 mainframe customers across a range of different verticals, including government, financial services, and manufacturing, by independent software vendor William Data Systems (WDS) found commitment to mainframes is strong – and growing. Nearly half— 49 percent —of “Big Iron” customers expected to grow mainframe processes during the next year. The study also found staffing concerns among respondents: Forty-four percent of those asked said that existing or anticipated worker shortages would delay the deployment of new mainframe-related projects or services.

“The only glitch is the outlook for IT talent,” Bostick continued. “But managed service providers, such as dbaDIRECT, with scaleable, intelligent processes, provide the solution to this labor-shortage glitch.”

According to Bostick, there are other trends driving the shift toward managed services for mainframes that are exacerbating the talent shortage. He named the “explosion of data volumes,” the demand for “24x7x365 mission-critical” support, regulatory compliance requirements such as Sarbanes-Oxley, and the overall desire for IT/business alignment and flexibility.

“We are responding to these trends with scaleable automation, advanced process design and service level expertise that gives better year-over-year flexibility to plan for the era of explosive data growth,” Bostick said. “Bottom line is mainframe computing is fast, cheap, stable and growing but increasingly expensive to administer and maintain,” Bostick concluded. “Our Data IM model enables customers to capture the falling computation hard-costs and fix the rising administrative soft-costs at the same time.”

“Our partnership with dbaDIRECT supports Mainline’s commitment to providing complete solutions by the best people in the industry,” said Kevin A. Sjodin, group director, Mainline Services Group. “dbaDIRECT provides a much needed answer—a 7×24 service that provides enhanced management of the most mission-critical databases at a lower budget amount than would be required for organizations to achieve the same service with internal personnel. When so many people are being asked to do more with less, this becomes a very valuable offering.”

“With outsourcing it used to be low cost but high risk, and that choice didn’t make sense with the DBA function,” said John Bostick, president and CEO, dbaDIRECT. “Mainline has recognized that DBA outsourcing has turned mainstream, and our partnership can deliver a lower cost, lower risk, higher service alternative.”

About Mainline Information Systems
Mainline Information Systems was founded in 1989 as a computer consulting firm. Since then it has become a global provider of information technology and e-business solutions. Mainline Information Systems is an IBM Premier Business Partner. In addition to its United States offices, Mainline Global Systems has offices in China and Korea. Corporate offices are located at 1700 Summit Lake Drive, Tallahassee, Florida 32311. For more information call 850.219.5000 or visit www.mainline.com.

“dbaDIRECT’s proven success working with industry leaders and in-depth database expertise are qualities unparalleled in the industry,” said Michael Gray, senior vice president, Champion Solutions Group. “Our partnership with dbaDIRECT is another step forward in offering our customers a true solution that meets all of their infrastructure needs.”

“Champion Solutions Group knows technology infrastructure solutions and what it takes to be successful in this area of the marketplace,” said John Bostick, president and CEO of dbaDIRECT. “Our partnership creates a synergy that offers the highest levels of database infrastructure services to customers at lower costs than offshore and traditional alternatives.”

About Champion Solutions Group
Champion Solutions Group, a Premier IBM Business Partner, specializes in the design and implementation of storage networking, high availability clustering, server and storage consolidation, backup and recovery, hardware and software asset management and eBusiness solutions. These infrastructure solutions help increase application productivity, reduce costs, and improve overall system and storage performance and reliability. For more information about Champion Solutions Group, please visit http://www.championsg.com.

“dbaDIRECT’s reliability, consistent service, responsiveness and creative solutions led us to the decision to leverage the relationship across Cinergy,” said Ken Roth, General Manager, Business IT Solutions at Cinergy.

“This is another success story coming from a valued long-time customer,” said John Bostick, president and CEO of dbaDIRECT. “Our services are a breakthrough solution for database administration that enables leading companies like Cinergy to cost-effectively manage their environment and rapidly deploy additional skilled resources to strategic projects as operational requirements grow. The result is best service and best value for our customer.”

About Cinergy Corp.
Cinergy Corp. has a balanced, integrated portfolio consisting of two core businesses: regulated operations and commercial businesses. Cinergy’s regulated delivery operations in Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky serve 1.5 million electric customers and about 500,000 gas customers. In addition, its Indiana regulated operations own 7,000 megawatts of generation. Cinergy’s commercial business unit is a Midwest leader in low-cost generation owning 6,300 megawatts of capacity with a profitable balance of stable existing customer portfolios, new customer origination, marketing and trading, and industrial-site cogeneration. The “into Cinergy” power-trading hub is one of the most liquid trading hubs in the nation.

In today’s marketplace, companies are increasingly engaging in outsourcing as a strategic maneuver to lower operational costs. Many executives are evaluating whether to move IT infrastructure management offshore in order to capitalize on cost-efficiencies produced by low-cost IT labor. However, major deterrents to offshore decision-making include the possibility of declining service levels due to the inherent risks of doing business overseas such as security exposures, cultural communication barriers, excessive government oversight, and disparate process methodologies.

dbaDIRECT’s services provide companies with a new US-based alternative to offshore outsourcing that beats overseas providers on cost without the risks of taking IT offshore. From its operations center in Greater-Cincinnati, dbaDIRECT delivers a full-service DBA solution including database monitoring, correction, and management services in addition to real-time performance and trend reporting on a 24×365 basis. Built on the company’s ONguard^® process, dbaDIRECT’s services support all major database platforms and integrate the most advanced architecture, technology, and procedures for database administration in the industry. ONguard creates economies of scale that enable dbaDIRECT to deliver its services at a lower cost than offshore alternatives. The dbaDIRECT-LÛCRUM partnership will extend this value to organizations in the Midwestern marketplace.

“In the past, our customers had to look for ‘time and material’ consulting database upgrades, performance tuning, and general proactive maintenance,” said Matt Mountain, managing director, business development at LÛCRUM. “But now, dbaDIRECT performs all these tasks and more for one low annual premium and gives our customers a predictable budget for a very mission-critical area of their production systems.”

“LÛCRUM has been a very successful partner, bringing new clients in the Greater-Cincinnati area to dbaDIRECT culminating in over $1 million in new contracts,” said Lary Runge, vice president of marketing and operations at dbaDIRECT. “dbaDIRECT and LÛCRUM are offering companies breakthrough outsourcing alternatives by delivering market-leading, US-based solutions that beat offshore firms on cost and drive up service levels without the inherent risks of taking IT support overseas.”

About LÛCRUM
Founded in 1993 with headquarters in Cincinnati, LÛCRUM is an independent strategic consulting firm that develops eBusiness, analytical and operational solutions for manufacturing, health care, financial services, and general business based on financial impact and return on investment (ROI) maturity. LÛCRUM’s practice areas include digital strategies for business intelligence, eBusiness, and management consulting.

About dbaDIRECT
dbaDIRECT is the pioneer and leader in remote dba  services. Dedicated 100 percent to database administration, dbaDIRECT is the only company that supports all major database platforms (Oracle, DB2 UDB, Sybase, Informix, SQL Server) using the ONguard^® process. dbaDIRECT manages thousands of databases for clients worldwide from its international Database Operations Center^® headquartered in Greater Cincinnati. For more information, please visit www.dbadirect.com or call 877.687.3227.

“The combination of Cosyne’s expertise with Microsoft’s business intelligence solutions and dbaDIRECT’s ONguard^® SQL Server administration is an example of Microsoft Certified partners delivering real customer value through a complementary alliance,” said Tom Rizzo, director of product management for SQL Server at Microsoft.

Backed by dbaDIRECT’s ONguard process, the services offer a complete SQL Server-based solution integrating full-scale DBA support, real-time portal reporting, and process optimization on a 24×365 basis.

“We are delighted with our partnership with dbaDIRECT because it gives clients the ability to out-task mundane and repetitive dba functions, freeing valuable personnel for higher-value projects,” said Perry Ram, Cosyne’s CEO. “After an extensive evaluation of the marketplace, we chose to partner with dbaDIRECT based on its leadership position in the industry, quality processes, customer responsiveness, and extraordinary infrastructure.”

“The dbaDIRECT-Cosyne relationship is an excellent example of Microsoft Certified Partners working together to create true-value solutions in the marketplace,” said John Bostick, president and CEO of dbaDIRECT. “Cosyne is an expert at business intelligence, and we look forward to a successful relationship going forward.”

About Cosyne
Collaborating with its partners Microsoft, NetIQ, dbaDIRECT and Unisys, Cosyne delivers business intelligence products and services to a client base which includes Fortune 50 and rapidly growing companies. Founded in 1998, Cosyne has served more than fifty clients, including leaders such as Accenture, Anthem, Ernst & Young, IBM, GE, Microsoft, Oracle and PriceWaterhouseCoopers. Cosyne is privately held and headquartered in Cumming, GA. To contact Cosyne, call 678.218.0225, visit us on the web at www.cosyne.com.

“dbaDIRECT is pleased to deliver a strong value proposition that enables organizations to focus on their core competencies,” said John Bostick, president and CEO of dbaDIRECT. “We look forward to helping the University of Cincinnati achieve continued educational excellence.”

About the University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati is a state-supported, Research I institution located in southwest Ohio. UC offers many pathways for success by providing a balance of educational excellence and real-world experience. Within a dynamic community, the university nurtures rich cultural experiences and the intellectual exchange of ideas. Since its founding in 1819, UC has been the source of many discoveries creating positive change for society, including co-op education, the oral polio vaccine, the first electronic organ, the first safe anti-knock gasoline, and the first antihistamine. Each year, this public, comprehensive university graduates 5,000 students, adding to more than 200,000 living alumni around the world. UC is the largest employer in the Cincinnati region, with an economic impact of more than $3 billion.

“We chose dbaDIRECT for their ability to provide us with 24×7 remote dba monitoring and their ability to correct many problems without local intervention,” said Rick Aaronson, director of information technology at Lexington Home Brands.

dbaDIRECT’s Controller offering is a full-featured database management service that includes all the activities of a full-time remote  database administrator (rDBA) and proactive management of the database environment on a 24×365 basis. The service also provides companies with graphical tracking tools that enhance operational intelligence via dbaDIRECT’s clientDIRECT® Portal, an online channel connecting customers to interactive reports highlighting database performance trends, server status, and a real-time event log.

“dbaDIRECT continues to deliver bottom-line value for companies by solving database administration challenges with our ONguard® process,” said John Bostick, president and CEO of dbaDIRECT. “As an industry leader, Lexington Home Brands knows what it takes to be successful and joins the many corporations worldwide that leverage our services to gain a competitive edge in the marketplace.”

About Lexington Home Brands
Lexington Home Brands is a recognized industry brand and style leader, offering a complete line of home furnishings for bedroom, dining, occasional, home entertainment, home office, and youth, plus wicker and upholstered and leather seating. Lexington pioneered lifestyle furniture brands with the introduction of Bob Timberlake® in 1990–the world’s all-time, best-selling furniture brand. Lexington adult brands include Bob Timberlake®, Haley & Carter(TM), Henry Link Trading Company(TM), Lexington®, Nautica Home, Palmer Home(TM), Smithsonian®, Southern Living®, Susan Sargent, Tommy Bahama®, and Waverly®; also youth brands, Betsy Cameron(TM), Bob Timberlake® GrandKids, Lauryn Olivia®, and Lexington Kids(TM).

“We are very pleased to be working with the State of Kentucky and its strategy to support and participate in developing the technology-based economy of the state,” said John Bostick, president and CEO of dbaDIRECT. “dbaDIRECT is now supporting databases located in 48 of our 50 states, Europe, and Mexico from its international Database Operations Center® headquartered in Florence, Kentucky.”

“We have been a dbaDIRECT client for just over a year and have recently renewed our contract with pleasure,” said Satish Movva, vice president and chief information officer of Interim HealthCare. “Since MS SQL Server is our core technical competency, dbaDIRECT provides us with the database expertise we need to continuously manage our Oracle databases supporting our mission-critical payroll systems. For less than half the price of hiring full-time Oracle DBAs, dbaDIRECT monitors our system for exception conditions, gives us proactive notification on system patches and performance issues, and performs routine DBA tasks as well. dbaDIRECT’s team interacts with our staff as if they are one of our employees.”

“A CIO’s risk management equation does not have one single silver bullet. CIOs must manage risk throughout every single element of the enterprise,” said John Bostick, president and CEO of dbaDIRECT. “dbaDIRECT is pleased to continue to participate in their plans with the ONguard platform, which provides the world’s best production database services for corporate America and Europe.”

Alberto-Culver Company manufactures, distributes and markets leading beauty and health care products including Alberto VO5, St. Ives Swiss Formula and TRESemme in the United States and internationally. Its Sally Beauty Company is the number one marketer of professional beauty care products in the United States through its chain of Sally Beauty Supply stores. Sally also operates its BSG (Beauty Systems Group) network selling professional beauty care brands such as Matrix, Paul Mitchell, Graham Webb and Sebastian to salon owners and salon professionals in exclusive geographic territories.

Ameren Corporation provides energy services to 2.2 million customers in Missouri and Illinois. Electric revenues account for approximately 92 percent of the company’s total $3.8 billion in revenues, with the remainder from sales of natural gas and other services. Created by the merger of Union Electric Company and CIPSCO Incorporated, Ameren recently acquired CILCORP Inc., parent of Central Illinois Light Company, and added 200,000 natural gas and 200,000 electric customers to its customer base in Illinois. Founded more than 100 years ago, the company prides itself on a long, successful tradition of financial strength, cost containment, low rates and continuous customer service improvements, as well as nine decades of uninterrupted cash dividend payments to stockholders.

Atria Retirement and Assisted Living offers housing and unique living opportunities to approximately 8,000 retired Americans. Atria’s services are tailored to meet the needs of independent retirees, as well as the needs of elders who require some assistance with daily living activities. The company also offers specialized services for persons with Alzheimer’s Disease and other forms of dementia.

Constellation Brands is a leading producer and marketer of beverage alcohol brands, with a broad portfolio of wines, spirits and imported beers. The Company is the largest single-source supplier of these products in the United States, and both a major producer and independent drinks wholesaler in the United Kingdom. Well-known brands in Constellation’s portfolio include: Corona Extra, Pacifico, Modelo Especial, St. Pauli Girl, Black Velvet, Fleischmann’s, Schenley, Ten High, Franciscan Oakville Estate, Simi, Estancia, Ravenswood, Alice White, Talus, Vendange, Almaden, Arbor Mist, Stowells of Chelsea and Blackthorn.

Interim HealthCare, founded in 1966, is the nation’s oldest health care franchise organization and the largest combined provider of home care and supplemental health care staffing. The company has also expanded its presence in the marketplace by offering a variety of clinical business services including a national network for educating and training that can be easily accessed by pharmaceutical and medical device companies. Based in Sunrise Florida, Interim HealthCare has nearly 300 offices in the United States and Brazil. It employs more than 50,000 health care workers and serves nearly 43,000 people each day.

Prime Succession Inc. is the fifth largest supplier of funeral and cemetery products and services in the death care industry in the United States. Through its subsidiaries, the company owns and operates approximately 95 funeral homes and 18 cemeteries in 17 states.

Royster-Clark, Inc., led by Francis Jenkins, Chairman and CEO and Ken Moshenek, President and COO, is a retail and wholesale distributor of mixed fertilizer, fertilizer materials, seed, crop protection products and agronomic services to farmers, with over 300 outlets primarily in the East, South and Midwest. Royster-Clark’s operations consist of retail farm centers, granulation, blending and seed processing plants, and an integrated network of storage and distribution terminals and warehouses. In addition, Royster-Clark operates two nitrogen-manufacturing plants that supply the retail and wholesale distribution businesses with nitrogen fertilizer products.

“CIOs today face the challenges of shrinking budgets, increased service demands and a growing organizational requirement for information access,” said Phil Santoni, CEO of Net Direct Systems. “NDS Database Managed Services meets these challenges head on by providing a state-of-the-art, bulletproof solutions for our customers’ database requirements. Net Direct Systems, working together with dbaDIRECT, will provide unmatched technology expertise and IT value delivering remote dba managed services.”

“The IT industry has ten-fold more risk management today than prior to 9/11,” said John Bostick, president and CEO of dbaDIRECT. “dbaDIRECT takes the risk of production database systems out of IT and replaces it with a world-class proactive support system. Together, Net Direct Systems and dbaDIRECT will continue to produce a ‘worryless’ environment for today’s CIO.”

About Net Direct Systems
Headquartered in North Carolina with locations in 12 other states, Net Direct Systems is a complete solutions provider of enterprise management systems and technology consulting services. The company focuses on security, infrastructure, and networking targeted to the healthcare, telecommunications, government, and commercial markets. For more information, please go to www.netdirectsystems.com

“dbaDIRECT is precisely the kind of best-of-breed provider we look for, primarily because the company’s ONguard process does such a superb job relieving our clients of the onerous administrative tasks around database management,” said Tony Greenberg CEO, RampRate. “dbaDIRECT‘s comprehensive database management services capability is vital to businesses that need to optimize IT resources and keep costs in check – in other words, to every business. We also appreciate dbaDIRECT’s commitment to being an active, engaged RampRate provider.”

With significant background in hosting, co-location, streaming media, and media technologies, RampRate helps to redefine the way infrastructure services are purchased. By shifting the burden of vendor interaction away from clients to RampRate, clients benefit from the company’s extensive expertise, proven process methodology and rapid turnaround—from bid to contract completion and beyond. RampRate acts as a trusted third party and becomes the de facto decision maker on all service purchases.

“RampRate uses a proven process to match best-of-breed solutions to satisfy customer requirements and has affirmed dbaDIRECT’s services as the best practice solution for database management,” said Terry Brown, director of business development for dbaDIRECT. “Our services will provide RampRate’s customers with the edge of being able to meet their important database needs 24 x 365 while staying focused on what they do best.”

“dbaDIRECT offers a unique shared services approach for Business Process Outsourcing that costs significantly less and provides an elevated level of service compared to an internal staffing model,” said Steve Hinkel, Manager of Business Intelligence for Cinergy. “We originally sought dbaDIRECT’s expertise in an effort to continually reduce our costs. Over several years of working with dbaDIRECT, our quality has increased, our cycle times have decreased, and cost savings have become a by-product of the initiative. This delicate balance of time, cost, and quality has been the key to our success in this area.”

Controller includes all the database  management functions of a full-time remote dba, such as monitoring, maintenance, tuning, backup, and recovery delivered on a 24 X 365 basis. The service also provides in-depth tools to raise operational intelligence via dbaDIRECT’s clientDIRECT Portal, an online channel where customers view interactive reports highlighting performance trends, server status, and scheduled events.

EMBU uses Controller to ensure that there are no gaps in remote dba support during off-hours including nights, weekends, or holidays. The service also allows EMBU to increase the productivity of its internal DBAs by focusing their efforts toward strategic projects versus routine database administration duties.

“The intense demands of the energy marketplace requires Cinergy’s EMBU to maintain a highly scalable and reliable IT infrastructure,” said Brad Landstra, vice president of sales for dbaDIRECT Inc. “Our services allow EMBU to cost effectively manage their business-critical systems and rapidly deploy additional skilled resources as their operational requirements grow.”

About Cinergy Corp.
Cinergy Corp. has a balanced, integrated portfolio consisting of two core businesses: energy merchant and regulated operations. Its energy merchant business is a Midwest leader in low-cost generation owning 7,000 megawatts of capacity with a profitable balance of stable existing customer portfolios, new customer origination, marketing and trading, and industrial-site cogeneration. The “into Cinergy” power-trading hub is the most liquid trading hub in the nation. Cinergy also owns regulated delivery operations in Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky that serve 1.5 million electric customers and about 500,000 gas customers. In addition, its Indiana regulated operations own 6,000 megawatts of generation.

Features of clientDIRECT Portal 2.0 include the following:

One-Glance Homepage: provides customers with an overview of their database environment “at-a-glance.” The homepage displays a 5-tab layout and incorporates many new features—-Event Calendar, Event Graphing, Event Summary Matrix, Advanced Event Search Capabilities, “Instant View” of Last 10 Events, and Significant Events Listing—-empowering customers with top-of-mind awareness about the events occurring within their environment.

Robust Reporting: displays a variety of interactive, graphical reports for fast access to critical database information. Customers may select from four report options:

• Trend Reports – facilitate long-term database trend and performance analysis by supplying easy-to-read graphs based on customer-selected parameters and data sets.
• Quick Reports – provide a “quick view” in both graphical and a table summary formats of database performance trends for each hour of the day.
• Mining Reports – enable detailed trend analysis by providing the capability to mine large amounts of performance data according to customer-specified time periods.
• Event Reports – highlight monitored events encountered over time so customers can easily identify repetitive problems and improve future resource planning.

Comprehensive Event Tracking: enables customers to track monitored events within the database environment concurrently with dbaDIRECT’s response to each issue—from the time of initial occurrence through problem resolution. Customers are also able to instantly view events using the Event Calendar, Event Summary Matrix, and Significant Events features located on the clientDIRECT Portal 2.0 homepage.

Exact Event Search: provides an advanced search engine that finds dbaDIRECT-monitored events. Customers are able to pinpoint specific events and generate summaries by specifying parameters including server name, ticket number, last number of events, elapsed days, status type, event type, and critical level.

24 X 365 Online Service Request: communicates customer requests for technical assistance to dbaDIRECT via a Web-interface. Customers can attach documentation, specify database servers, and set priority levels for each service request.

Real-Time Server Status: displays the current status of the entire database environment and of individual servers from a single graphical display. This feature will soon be released and available for an additional fee.

“We continue to place a high priority on enabling our customers to access the information they need to enhance business decision-making,” said Mark Vorholt, dbaDIRECT’s chief technology officer. “This new release provides more reporting options for database performance and event management and also makes it easier for clients to submit service requests to us. clientDIRECT Portal 2.0 enables our clients to quickly take their database operational intelligence to the next level at no additional cost.”

“In today’s health care industry, system reliability is vital to provide patients with the highest quality of care,” said Brad Landstra, vice president of sales for dbaDIRECT. “We align all of our people, processes, and technology toward delivering the most reliable, comprehensive DBA services in the industry. Our services will enable Cincinnati Children’s to ensure optimal database availability and performance while staying focused on achieving its core mission—providing the most innovative care and treatment for children and their families.”

About Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center
Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center is a 426-bed institution dedicated to the pursuit of perfect health care. It is the only pediatric organization in the US to receive the prestigious Pursuing Perfection grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The Cincinnati Children’s Research Foundation ranks third nationally among all pediatric centers in research grants from the National Institutes of Health. The Cincinnati Children’s vision is to be the leader in improving child health, through patient care, research and education. For more information, visit Cincinnati Children’s Web site at www.cchmc.org.

SkilGroup has responded to this situation by partnering with dbaDIRECT to offer its customers a full-featured selective outsourcing solution for database administration. SkilGroup’s “Powered by dbaDIRECT” offering will deliver dbaDIRECT’s complete suite of services—The Informant(SM), The Guardian(SM), and The Controller(SM) — including all capabilities of a full-time  DBA such as monitoring, proactive management, maintenance, performance tuning, backup, recovery, and reporting. Leveraging dbaDIRECT’s services, Skilgroup’s customers will be able to reduce their remote DBA staffing costs, save software purchasing and maintenance costs, optimize database availability and performance, and focus internal staff more fully on strategic, high-return projects.

“SkilGroup understands the needs of the sophisticated IT services market segment and has recognized the value of providing customers with a robust, cost-effective dba  solution,” said Terry Brown, director of business development for dbaDIRECT. “Our services are built upon our dbaDIRECT ONguard process and deliver the highest level of  remote dba expertise and support available in the marketplace today. Together, SkilGroup and dbaDIRECT will further extend the value of selective outsourcing for database administration to the large enterprise.”

“Our clients count on SkilGroup for innovative, progressive solutions to their pressing business challenges,” said John Dreyer, President of SkilGroup. “Our new partnership with dbaDIRECT gives us an important new capability to offer our customers in their efforts to excel on the global stage. dbaDIRECT has proven itself with many of the largest companies in the US. Its highly reliable, feature-rich and cost-effective outsourcing of production DBA services is without peer in the industry. We look forward to combining our ‘Powered By dbaDIRECT’ offering with our current capabilities to strengthen our clients’ competitive standing.”

About SkilGroup
SkilGroup strengthens the global competitiveness of its clients through a full range of Information Technology consulting, staffing, training and selective outsourcing services. Specific areas of expertise include Enterprise Application Services, Supply Chain Management, Customer Relationship Management, Web-based Systems Integration, Custom Application Development, Operations and IT Strategy. SkilGroup is headquartered near Chicago in Rolling Meadows, IL. For additional information, please contact the company at 877-4SKLGRP, or on the web at www.skilgroup.com.

Ameren Corporation provides energy services to 1.8 million customers in Missouri and Illinois. Approximately 93 percent of the company’s $4.5 billion revenues flow from electric sales, with the remainder from sales of natural gas and other services. Created by the merger of Union Electric Company and CIPSCO Incorporated, Ameren prides itself on a long, successful tradition of financial strength, cost containment, low rates and continuous customer service improvements, as well as nine decades of uninterrupted cash dividend payments to stockholders.

“Corporations are truly benefiting from dbaDIRECT’s better approach to managing distributed database systems,” said John Bostick, president and CEO of dbaDIRECT. “This allows them to focus on growing their core business in a very competitive global economy.”

“In today’s fast-paced e-business marketplace where business-critical data must be accessible 24 X 365, proactive support of the database infrastructure is essential,” said John Bostick, president and CEO of dbaDIRECT. “Industry-leaders like Alberto-Culver have recognized that our services provide a reliable, cost-effective way to take system uptime, performance, and rDBA staffing efficiency to the highest possible level. We are delighted to be working with Alberto-Culver and look forward to helping them achieve continued success.”

About Alberto-Culver
Alberto-Culver Company manufactures, distributes and markets leading beauty and health care products including Alberto VO5, St. Ives Swiss Formula and TRESemme in the United States and internationally. Its Sally Beauty Company is the number one marketer of professional beauty care products in the United States through its chain of Sally Beauty Supply stores. Sally also operates its BSG (Beauty Systems Group) network selling professional beauty care brands such as Matrix, Paul Mitchell, Graham Webb and Sebastian to salon owners and salon professionals in exclusive geographic territories.

“dbaDIRECT’s remote database administration solutions are a natural complement to UCR’s existing service offerings,” said Robert Yu, President of UCR. “Both small-to medium-sized (SMB) businesses and the public sector need their data to be accessible around the clock but often have difficulty maintaining the necessary remote DBA staff on a tight budget. UCR is excited to offer dbaDIRECT to customers in our market that currently do not have the expertise or capability to ensure their database integrity and availability.”

“Database uptime and performance are vital ingredients in today’s nonstop e-Business environments,” said Terry Brown, director of business development for dbaDIRECT. “By bringing industry-leading solutions together, dbaDIRECT and UCR are offering customers more cost-effective ways to keep their business-critical systems running smoothly 24 X 365.”

About UCR
Robert Yu founded UCR in 1986 and the company is located in Dayton, OH. UCR is a leading information technology services provider that architects, builds, and deploys e-Business technology solutions for small medium sized businesses (SMB), government, and education. UCR specializes in integrating Internet, networking, and application technologies. For more information about UCR, visit www.ucrnet.com

“With the track record and the expertise of dbaDIRECT’s personnel, we think that our clients will benefit tremendously from our partnership,” said Ronak Desai, vice president of sales and marketing for The Boston Group.

“Success in today’s global marketplace demands more than just cutting costs, it means maximizing revenue,” said Terry Brown, director of business development for dbaDIRECT. “Our partnership with The Boston Group provides customers with a cost-effective way to achieve the highest levels of database availability and performance without getting distracted from core competencies that drive profitability.”

About The Boston Group
The Boston Group (TBG) is a global provider of software development, elearning & IT solutions. Since its inception in 1988, TBG has provided cost-effective IT solutions to Fortune 1000, Small & Mid-Size companies from its state-of-the-art development centers in the U.S., India, Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines. For further information please visit www.thebostongroup.com.

“We purchased a SQL Server-based application, but had limited internal SQL Server expertise,” said Clint Gibler, CIO with The Western & Southern Financial Group. “After evaluating the pros and cons of hiring versus outsourcing, dbaDIRECT’s value proposition was too great to pass up. dbaDIRECT provides 24 X 365 support at an affordable cost, and this was important to us.”

“In the past, our customers had to look for ‘time and material’ consulting for database upgrades, performance tuning, and general proactive maintenance,” said Matt Mountain, director of business development for LÛCRUM Inc. “But now, dbaDIRECT performs all these tasks and more for one annual premium and gives our customers a predictable budget for a very mission-critical area of their production systems.”

dbaDIRECT delivers ‘round the clock remote DBA services that enable companies to ensure optimum performance and availability of their business-critical databases with fewer people at a lower cost.

LÛCRUM develops eBusiness, analytical, and operational consulting solutions based on financial impact and return on investment (ROI) maturity. LÛCRUM’s practice areas include digital strategies for management consulting, business intelligence, eBusiness, and customer relationship management.

“Our partnership with LÛCRUM widens the capacity of our distribution channels and boosts our capabilities to provide customers with the highest level of database support services available,” said Terry Brown, director of channel sales for dbaDIRECT. “By joining forces, dbaDIRECT and LUCRUM are bringing market-leading services together to enable customers to take business-critical system performance to the next level.”

About LÛCRUM
Founded in 1993 by John Bostick with headquarters in Cincinnati, LÛCRUM is an independent strategic consulting firm that develops eBusiness, analytical and operational solutions for manufacturing, health care, financial services, and general business based on financial impact and return on investment (ROI) maturity. LÛCRUM’s practice areas include digital strategies for business intelligence, eBusiness, and management consulting. For more information on LÛCRUM, visit www.lucruminc.com or e-mail info@lucruminc.com.

Interactive Applications Group (iapps) is a full-service Internet consulting, development and design firm with offices in Washington, D.C., New York City, and San Francisco. Since 1994, iapps has helped over 80 foundation and nonprofit clients integrate the Internet into their program, policy, and grantmaking activities. The firm specializes in database-driven Web applications that streamline content management, enhance communication and facilitate online collaboration.

Comag Marketing Group LLC (CMG), a jointly owned company of The Hearst Corporation and Condé Nast Publications, Inc., is a widely diversified international, sales and marketing organization for America’s leading magazines. CMG provides client publishers with comprehensive sales, marketing and promotional services through a network of domestic and overseas sales venues including, mass market, direct to retail and specialty market channels.

SMART Papers is one of the nation’s largest privately-held manufacturers of premium printing papers. The company makes a wide range of well-known paper brands—including Kromekote^®plus, Knighkote Matte, Benefit^®, Carnival^®, All Purpose Litho™ and SMART Digital^® Papers—at its Hamilton, Ohio papermaking center. SMART Papers sells its products to commercial printers, paper distributors, graphic designers and corporations throughout North America.

Atria Retirement and Assisted Living offers housing and unique living opportunities to approximately 8,000 retired Americans. Atria’s services are tailored to meet the needs of independent retirees, as well as the needs of elders who require some assistance with daily living activities. The company also offers specialized services for persons with Alzheimer’s Disease and other forms of dementia.

Interim HealthCare, founded in 1966, is the nation’s oldest health care franchise organization and the largest combined provider of home care and supplemental health care staffing. The company has also expanded its presence in the marketplace by offering a variety of clinical business services including a national network for educating and training that can be easily accessed by pharmaceutical and medical device companies. Based in Sunrise Florida, Interim HealthCare has nearly 300 offices in the United States and Brazil. It employs more than 50,000 health care workers and serves nearly 43,000 people each day.

“dbaDIRECT’s remote DBA services allow us to provide the highest quality of service to our clients,” said Miles Fawcett, president and CEO of iapps. “By continuously monitoring and proactively managing our environment, dbaDIRECT provides us with the support to maintain optimum database availability and performance on a 24 X 365 basis.”

“Success in today’s economy results from making smart decisions that maximize value and key business strengths,” said John Bostick, president and CEO of dbaDIRECT. “Many industry leaders from the Fortune 1000 and Forbes Private 500, as well as mid-market and growth companies, are now leveraging our services to get better systems management at a lower cost.”

KMK Consulting provides specialized business consulting services and solutions to corporate, entrepreneurial, not-for-profit, community and executive clients.

dbaDIRECT delivers 24 X 365 remote DBA services that enable customers to better manage their business-critical databases with fewer people at a lower cost.

“Our partnership with KMK Consulting will grow a higher awareness to increasing the bottom-line of corporate America at a time when profits are going to be made by additional revenue and lower operating costs,” said John Bostick, president and CEO of dbaDIRECT. “In addition to corporate America, KMK’s existing relationships with local and state governments across the country will also enable us to offer lower cost alternatives to meet the budgetary goals of government institutions.”

About KMK Consulting
KMK Consulting provides specialized business consulting services, primarily to corporate, entrepreneurial, not-for-profit, community and executive clients. KMKC specializes in advisory services in connection with company restructuring; business formation; acquisitions; strategic issue analysis; strategic planning; leadership development; economic development; government affairs; marketing strategies; business alliances and public/private partnerships. Collectively, the KMKC team has expertise with all types and sizes of corporations including experience serving on boards of directors of a variety of enterprises from family businesses to publicly held global companies. Learn more on the Internet at www.kmkconsulting.com

That’s the opinion of Mark Vorholt, chief technology officer of dbaDIRECT, an IT outsourcing company specializing in remote dba services. Vorholt, a nationally recognized expert in remote database administration and selective outsourcing strategy, is the author of a new white paper entitled, “The Remote DBA Solution to Modern Database Administration Challenges.” The report analyzes common database administration problems and demonstrates how outsourcing DBA functions to a remote DBA is a more practical, profitable solution than performing them exclusively in-house.

Some of the challenges addressed in white paper include:

IT Cost Reductions: Organizations have downsized their internal DBA staff to save money, yet now they risk losing productivity due to insufficient support. Existing DBAs will need to be supplemented to avoid financial loss due to downtime.

Database Complexity: Databases continue to grow in size and complexity. Due to the constant flux in database technology, organizations will need to find new ways to keep pace and to offset heavy training expenses of in-house personnel.

Focus on Core Competencies: In-house DBAs are pulled in many directions―from daily maintenance activities to new implementations. But each time a DBA gets pulled away from strategic projects, the organization suffers a competitive disadvantage. Therefore, it is essential that organizations find ways to free their internal DBAs to concentrate exclusively on the adoption of new technologies and applications.

Burgeoning DBA Workload: Databases are handling more functionality than ever; consequently, the role of the DBA is expanding. DBAs now work over fifty hours per week and at least six hours on weekends. Organizations will need to use alternative, cost-effective staffing models to offload some of the burden from in-house DBAs.

The report also presents the remote DBA value proposition in response to today’s pressing database demands:

Reduced Database Support Costs: Organizations are able to outsource daily operational duties (e.g. backup, tuning, performance monitoring, etc.) for about half the cost of increasing the existing internal DBA staff. Plus they can eliminate expenditures on contractors performing DBA-related work.

Improved Database Availability: Remote DBAs ensure continuous database uptime by monitoring the environment for immediate and potential problems, correcting them, and performing proactive measures to promote optimal system performance ― all on a 24 X 365 basis. Consequently, organizations are better able to meet constant availability requirements by eliminating support gaps during off-hours such as nights, weekends, and holidays.

Higher Productivity Toward Strategic Goals: Remote DBAs perform full database administration tasks ‘round the clock. This enables organizations to offload tactical database support from internal DBAs and focus their efforts solely on implementing strategic projects that grow the business’ core competencies.

For a free copy of the white paper, “The Remote DBA Solution to Modern Database Administration Challenges,” send an E-mail request to info@dbadirect.com or call 877-687-3227 Ext. 652.

Today’s top organizations face many database administration challenges ― from availability and performance issues to ensuring low support costs. Since databases function as the heart of most business-critical applications, choosing and implementing an effective database management strategy is crucial for success.

That’s the opinion of John Bostick, president and CEO of dbaDIRECT, who maintains that outsourcing remote DBA tasks to a remote DBA is a more reliable and cost-effective strategy than exclusive in-house support. Successful organizations are finding smart ways to reduce spending on operational systems while maximizing the customer experience, says Bostick. Selective outsourcing of functions that are not competitive differentiators but still critical for the business ― like those required to maintain production database support ― enables organizations to decrease and control operating costs, gain needed expertise in specific areas fast, and focus internal personnel toward projects that achieve the business’ core mission.

“Our continued growth within today’s largest and most dynamic corporations is a testimony to our ability to deliver real value to our clients,” said Bostick. “Our entire business is to ensure that our clients get the highest level of database reliability at the lowest possible cost. In short, we eliminate database administration worries, so our clients can achieve more strategic goals faster and more efficiently.”

“We are happy to have dbaDIRECT as a service delivery partner enabling Coradiant to provide 24 X 7 high-end database administration,” said David Coughlan, vice president of strategic development at Coradiant. “dbaDIRECT’s services enable us to focus our internal resources toward providing a total solution to our customer’s Web-based requirements instead of focusing on backend administration.”

Coradiant’s integrated infrastructure services provide remote management, maintenance, and proactive monitoring of business-critical Web sites from the company’s network operations centers. Clients receive quick implementation, high responsiveness, and save the costs of equipment purchasing.

dbaDIRECT delivers 24 X 365 remote DBA services enabling companies to achieve optimal database performance and availability with fewer people at a lower cost.

“We are excited about joining with Coradiant to deliver a full suite of continuous infrastructure management services,” said Brad Landstra, vice president of sales for dbaDIRECT. “In today’s dynamic environment, many organizations are being challenged to provide reliable systems more cost effectively. To address this challenge, Coradiant and dbaDIRECT are squarely aimed at reducing operational expense and increasing the reliability of our customers’ systems.”

About Coradiant Inc.
Coradiant Inc. is a leader in the collaborative management of complex Internet infrastructures. The company’s cooperative approach to managed services, combined with its industry-leading OutSight web performance management service, is essential for organizations that need real-time understanding and operation of their online applications. Started as a networking analysis and e-business consultancy in 1997, the company has, since 1999, concentrated on the deployment, operations, and continuous improvement of web systems for its clients. Coradiant’s team of web engineers and networking experts, along with its innovations in virtualization, facility-free integrated infrastructures, and real-time site performance analysis, help companies build sites with quick performance, high availability, and robust security. Coradiant is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts with offices and facilities in Silicon Valley, New York, and Montreal, Canada. For more information visit www.coradiant.com or call 1-(877)-731-7277 in North America.

“Xodiax and dbaDIRECT are providing a cost-effective and secure technology to Aperture to monitor our mission-critical databases around the clock,” said Ruth Wallace, CFO of Aperture. “This service allows us to dedicate our resources to other valuable projects.”

“Outsourcing dba to Xodiax saves time, money, and effectively leverages our intellectual capital,” said Jim Clishem, president and CEO of Xodiax. “Our clients are better able to focus their internal resources on other core systems and application development essential to growing their business.”

Aperture is a national Credentials Verification Organization (CVO) that has built and maintains the nation’s largest databank of healthcare practitioner information. The company’s leading customers include Humana Inc., United Healthcare, Oxford Health Plans, and HIP Health Plan of New York.

BIS is a leading provider of CRM process and technology solutions for the automotive industry. Headquartered in Louisville, BIS provides sales and service professionals with the customer retention, BDC/RDC, e-commerce, and trade cycle management technologies they need to effectively manage their customer relationships.

“As an ASP, BIS needed an Internet data center that we could depend on for a variety of managed services to provide the high level of service that our customers demand,” said Clay Turner, CTO of BIS. “BIS found a true partner in Xodiax, and we are very impressed by the level of professionalism that the Xodiax team exhibits. Xodiax is an asset to both BIS and to the entire IT community.”

About Xodiax Internet Data Centers
Xodiax, a Louisville, KY based company, provides colocation, web hosting, managed services and Internet access solutions for more than 90 clients throughout the Kentuckiana region. Xodiax builds and operates Internet data centers that deliver high-end Information Technology solutions as an outsourcing advantage to its clients. Xodiax is an IBM certified data center. Detailed information and a virtual tour of Xodiax facilities are available at www.xodiax.com.

The “Certified by BMC Software” status replaces BMC Software’s previous certification program, OnSite Elite, as the ultimate indicator that a company can provide SLM through a Service Assurance Center^® by adhering to BMC Software’s continuous improvement service management methodology. This service management methodology gives service providers competitive advantage by helping them deliver extreme performance and reliability while lowering costs. Delivering consistent and measurable service helps service providers attract and retain customers. As we move to a global economy, customers need constant availability and reliability of their applications in order to meet the needs of their customers.

“In order to compete, companies need to consistently deliver quality service to their customers,” said Mary Nugent, vice president and general manager of Service Provider Solutions for BMC Software. “By achieving ‘Certified by BMC Software’ status, dbaDIRECT is delivering proof to their customers that they are successfully maintaining the highest levels of service and availability through our proven service level management methodology.”

About BMC Software
BMC Software, Inc. [NYSE: BMC], is the leading provider of enterprise management solutions. Through its Assuring Business Availability^® approach, BMC Software delivers control over infrastructure management costs, control of market advantage and differentiation via service management, and growth of business value with solutions for business optimization. BMC Software is a member of the S&P 500, with fiscal year 2001 revenues exceeding $1.5 billion and offices worldwide. For more information, please visit the BMC Software Web site at http://www.bmc.com.

Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) is the nation’s number one specialty retailer of consumer electronics, personal computers, entertainment software and appliances. The Enterprise operates retail stores and commercial Web sites under the names: Best Buy (BestBuy.com), Magnolia Hi-Fi, Media Play (MediaPlay.com), On Cue (OnCue.com), Sam Goody (SamGoody.com) and Suncoast (Suncoast.com). The Company reaches consumers through more than 1,800 retail stores nationwide, in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Booz Allen Hamilton combines strategy with technology and insight with action, working with clients to deliver results today that endure tomorrow. A global leader in management and technology consulting, Booz Allen provides services to major international corporations and government clients around the world. Major areas of expertise include strategy, organization and strategic leadership, operations, information technology, technology management and e-business strategy and implementation.

Bose Corporation is best known as an American innovator in the manufacturing of quality sound systems. Founded in 1964 by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor, Dr. Amar G. Bose, the company maintains an exceptionally strong commitment to research and is the world’s largest manufacturer of component quality home stereo loudspeakers, high-end integrated music and home theater systems and acoustically customized automotive systems.

Capital One Financial Corporation is a holding company whose principal subsidiaries, Capital One Bank and Capital One, F.S.B., offer consumer lending products. Capital One’s subsidiaries are among the largest providers of MasterCard and Visa credit cards in the world. A FORTUNE 500 company, Capital One trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “COF” and is included in the S&P 500 Index. Capital One’s hallmark is its Information Based Strategy, the integration of marketing, credit, risk, operations and information technology to ensure each account is custom-fit to meet a customer’s individual circumstance.

“Industry-leading companies continue to select dbaDIRECT for secure, reliable remote database management services,” said John Bostick, president and chief executive officer of dbaDIRECT. “We have proven our ability to deliver real value to clients in the form of decreased costs, improved staffing efficiency, and higher systems performance and availability. We look forward to assisting these companies achieve continued success.”

Xodiax builds and operates state-of-the-art Internet data centers that enable its customers to use Internet technologies to improve revenues, decrease costs and generally improve overall service delivery.

dbaDIRECT uses the Internet to deliver 24x7x365 remote database administration services that enable companies to ensure optimum performance and availability of their business-critical databases with fewer people and at a lower cost.

“We are very proud to have dbaDIRECT as a service delivery partner enabling Xodiax to provide 24x7x365 high-end remote database administration and managed services for industrial strength enterprise deployments,” said Jim Clishem, president and CEO of Xodiax. “I am very impressed with dbaDIRECT’s professionalism and level of expertise. They bring a proven track record of delivering exceptional database administration and we are excited to offer these services to our clients.”

About Xodiax
Xodiax, a Louisville KY based company, provides colocation, web hosting, managed services and Internet access solutions for more than 90 clients throughout the Kentuckiana region. Xodiax builds and operates Internet data centers that deliver high-end Information Technology solutions as an outsourcing advantage to its clients. Xodiax is an IBM certified data center. Detailed information and a virtual tour of Xodiax facilities are available at www.xodiax.com.

Xodiax facilities and services:

• Redundant, physically diverse, high-speed carrier neutral Internet connectivity
• Dual power feeds, Battery backup and diesel generator systems
• A climate and humidity controlled environment
• Physical and logical security
• User-friendly customer management and reporting tools
• 24x7x365 network monitoring and management
• Managed services including bandwidth, computer and application monitoring, notification and reporting services, security scans, firewalls, tape backup and data storage/recovery services

“Companies gain a tremendous competitive advantage today by outsourcing non-strategic IT functions to proven, specialized service providers,” said Brad Landstra, vice president of sales for dbaDIRECT. “By proactively managing the database environment 24 X 365, we offload the burden of daily DBA tasks for industry leaders like Romano Brothers, and enable them to focus valuable internal resources toward projects that grow the business. We look forward to helping Romano Brothers achieve continued success.”

About Romano Brothers Beverage Company
Since 1884, Romano Brothers has been distributing many of the world’s most prestigious wine and spirit brands. Family owned and operated, Romano Bros. is headquartered in Chicago and employs more than 600 dedicated associates.

“In today’s nonstop marketplace, database availability and performance are crucial for companies to maintain their competitive advantage,” said Brad Landstra, vice president of sales for dbaDIRECT. “For industry leaders like Staffmark, our services serve as the insurance policy for 24 X 365 database reliability. We are very pleased that Staffmark has selected dbaDIRECT to provide this business-critical service.”

About Staffmark
Staffmark provides customized workforce solutions to meet the diverse needs of a wide range of companies. With more than 250 locations across the United States, Staffmark can meet the workforce needs of any size company. Staffmark offers short- and long-term supplemental staffing, supplemental-to-direct staffing, direct placement, and total outsourcing. Areas of specialization include office/administrative, logistics, call center, professional services, and light industrial. Find more information at www.staffmark.com.

“We have remote database administration down to a science – it’s our core business, so all of our people, technology, processes, and services orchestrate to deliver 24 X 365 database availability and performance to customers,” said Brad Landstra, vice president of sales for dbaDIRECT. “By channeling our rDBA services to their clients, Channels/ConServ is able to quickly boost customer value through improved database support while staying focused on its core competencies.”

About Channels/ConServ Inc.
Channels/ConServ Inc. is an energetic, innovative company specializing in systems integration, implementation services, and general information technology consulting. Whether customers utilize the company’s testing or monitoring products or take advantage of its consulting services, Channels/ConServ maintains a solid commitment to providing customers with their Channel to success. Channels/ConServ is the only company in the world to provide software and services from the products offered by BMC and Mercury Interactive with a direct focus on the success of its customers. For more information, please visit Channels/ConServ’s Web site at www.channelsasap.com.

“Our services cultivate reliable databases by continuously analyzing performance and throughput trends,” said Brad Landstra, vice president of sales for dbaDIRECT. “In this way, we perform the necessary preventative and proactive measures to ensure Shop At Home’s databases function at their highest potential and remain available at all times, especially during stress. For a business that never closes like Shop At Home, we help keep the doors open.”

About Shop At Home, Inc.
Shop At Home, Inc., a leader in converged technology, is a premier retailer of specialty consumer products through the use of interactive electronic media including broadcast, cable and satellite television and through the Company’s Internet site, www.shopathometv.com. Shop At Home Network reaches over 61 million unique cable and satellite households and owns full power television stations in San Francisco, Boston, Cleveland, Raleigh and Bridgeport, which is licensed to cover a portion of the New York market.

“We are relatively new to the remote Oracle database environment,” says Mike Gooldrup, vice president of information services for O’Neal Steel. “The expense of locating, hiring, and keeping a high quality database administrator has been a challenge at which we had been less than completely successful. We decided that, for us, the best long-term approach was to develop the necessary skill set among those on our existing staff. To accomplish this we concluded it would require short-term coverage until our people got up to speed. In addition, we also considered the need for longer-term back up and after hours support once our staff was up to speed. It seemed like an excellent fit for outsourcing. As we investigated possible alternatives, we found that dbaDIRECT provided the best fit for our needs in terms of level of expertise, experience, services offered, and cost. As a new customer, we are looking forward to partnership that will be beneficial to both our companies.”

“As the amount of corporate data skyrockets and databases continue to process more transactions at greater speed, organizations must maintain the availability and performance of their production systems to avoid costly downtime, negative publicity, and lost business,” said Brad Landstra, vice president of sales for dbaDIRECT. “O’Neal Steel continues to demonstrate a commitment to delivering the highest quality of products and services in the steel industry, and now joins our expanding list of clients who have recognized the value of our business model and our services.”

About O’Neal Steel
O’Neal Steel is a full-line metals service center headquartered in Birmingham, Al, with 38 locations throughout the South, Midwest, Southwest, and Mountain states.

“dbaDIRECT is basically our insurance policy that our applications are going to be running 24 X 365,” said Jerry Craig, applications project leader for Shire. “dbaDIRECT proactively manages the database environment, which reduces the stress on our in-house staff by allowing them to focus their time on more strategic projects and lifting the burden of off hours support.”

“The competitive nature of Shire’s business means they must continually seek ways to simultaneously improve service and reduce cost.” said Brad Landstra, vice president of sales for dbaDIRECT. “dbaDIRECT’s expertise in continuous monitoring and proactive database administration allows Shire to effectively manage their operational support costs and deliver high quality systems that are available 24 X 365.”

dbaDIRECT performs remote database administration services including monitoring, restoration, recovery, maintenance, and tuning. The company’s unique business model combines the industry-proven dbaDIRECT ONguard process, a large team of senior database administrators (DBAs), and BMC Software’s PATROL^® management tools. At a time when IT professionals are difficult to find and retain, and impeccable system reliability is vital, this integration provides staffing efficiency and gives clients peace of mind that their production databases are available 24 X 365.

About Shire US Inc.
Shire is a fast growing international specialty pharmaceutical company with a strategic focus on four therapeutic areas: central nervous system disorders, oncology/haematology, antivirals and biologics. The Group has a global sales and marketing infrastructure with a broad portfolio of products and its own direct marketing capability in the US, Canada, UK, Republic of Ireland, France, Germany, Italy and Spain, with plans to add Japan by 2004. Shire also covers the other significant pharmaceutical markets indirectly through distributors. For further information, please visit Shire’s Web site at www.shire.com.

“We are very pleased to be working with the GSA,” said Brad Landstra, vice president of sales for dbaDIRECT. “Data drives a tremendous number of processes within the government sector, and successful data management will result in producing the information and knowledge that can be applied for faster decision-making and improved public services. Our services lift the burden of remote database administration and ensure that the systems, which are critical to the success of each organization, remain available and perform at their highest potential 24 X 365. Our relationship with the GSA enables dbaDIRECT to better extend this value to customers in the government sector.”

dbaDIRECT performs remote database administration services including monitoring, restoration, recovery, maintenance, and tuning. The company’s unique business model combines the industry-proven dbaDIRECT ONguard(SM) process, a large team of senior database administrators (DBAs), and BMC Software’s PATROL^® management tools. At a time when IT professionals are difficult to find and retain, and impeccable system reliability is vital, this integration provides staffing efficiency and gives clients peace of mind that their production databases are available 24 X 365.

About General Services Administration (GSA)
GSA is one of three central management agencies in the Federal Government and functions as the business manager and purchasing agent for the U.S. Government. GSA provides policy leadership and expert solutions in services, space, and products, at the best value, to enable Federal employees to accomplish their missions.

GSA was established on July 1, 1949 by section 101 of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act as a result of a recommendation by a Presidential commission chaired by former President Herbert Hoover. The commission recommended the consolidation of four small agencies into one agency to avoid “senseless duplication, excess cost, and confusion in handling supplies . . . and providing space.”

Since 1949, GSA has housed federal workers and provided products and services to support the important work of government throughout the country. GSA affects almost $66 billion in financial transactions throughout the government. GSA employs about 14,000 people and has an annual budget of approximately $16 billion.

“dbaDIRECT’s services enable us to focus our valued internal resources toward providing a total solution to our customer’s strategic projects instead of focusing on backend administration,” said Fred Burdell, Director of MIS at Naptheon Inc. “We selected dbaDIRECT because they deliver the continuous database support we need to maintain 24 X 365 system availability.”

“We are excited to be working with Naptheon,” said Brad Landstra, vice president of sales for dbaDIRECT. “Our services ensure that production databases continue to run smoothly 24 X 365. We take the worry out of database administration, allowing Naptheon to focus its time and resources on the strategic projects that augment its core competencies as a premier IT services provider.”

dbaDIRECT performs remote database administration services including monitoring, restoration, recovery, maintenance, and tuning. The company’s unique business model combines the industry-proven dbaDIRECT ONguard(SM) process, a large team of senior database administrators (DBAs), and BMC Software’s PATROL^® management tools. At a time when IT professionals are difficult to find and retain, and impeccable system reliability is vital, this integration provides staffing efficiency and gives clients peace of mind that their production databases are available 24 X 365.

slmDIRECT continuously monitors and measures key metrics within the database environment and uses the terms of the customer’s SLA as a reference point. slmDIRECT then produces online status reports that give dbaDIRECT’s customers the capability to quantify SLA compliance and justify return on investment. Online reports are available on a 24 X 365 basis via the Client DIRECT Portal located on dbaDIRECT’s Web site. Through an interactive user interface, customers can now use slmDIRECT to view statistical service level management data, according to date and time, for the following metrics:

Database Server Availability – Percentage of time that the database is available

Database Performance – Average SQL response time measurements compared to expected results

Technical Support Responsiveness – Measurement of time for dbaDIRECT’s personnel to become actively engaged in resolving issues

Database Recovery Time – Elapsed time required to perform a database recovery

Service Level Breaches – Notification if service levels are not met for a specific metric and time period

“Because the data is collected in an automated fashion and delivered via the web, our clients can always know if we are meeting their expectations,” said Vorholt. “Essentially, we have developed a ‘report card’ that both we and our clients can use to judge our service delivery.”

slmDIRECT integrates seamlessly with dbaDIRECT’s Controller level of service and requires no additional software installation on the customer’s system.

dbaDIRECT offers three services to solution providers:

The Informant(SM): A database server monitoring service. The Informant delivers continuous monitoring of the database environment for hundreds of watchpoints including down server, space limitations, resource constraints, and long running processes. Trend reporting provides information for planning future resource needs.

The Guardian(SM): A database management service including monitoring and corrective actions. The Guardian integrates all services of The Informant and also includes diagnosis of the root causes of alarm conditions and corrective action to restore the system to a normal state.

The Controller(SM): A complete database administration service including monitoring, corrective action, and proactive management of the database environment. Incorporating all services within both The Informant and The Guardian, The Controller also includes proactive, ongoing reviews of the system for potential bottlenecks and availability constraints. Working within the system availability requirements, actions are taken to prevent future downtime and performance degradation.

“dbaDIRECT’s solution provider offerings enable our partners to make a fast, low risk entry into the remote database administration market,” said Brad Landstra, vice president of sales for dbaDIRECT. “We foster the success of our solution partners by providing them with a portfolio of value-added database management services supported by proven technology, a solid infrastructure, and our industry-tested dbaDIRECT ONguard process.”

dbaDIRECT performs remote database monitoring, corrective actions, and proactive management via the Internet. The company’s unique business model combines the industry-proven dbaDIRECT ONguard process, a large team of senior database administrators (DBAs), and BMC Software’s PATROL^® management tools. At a time when IT professionals are difficult to find and retain, and impeccable system reliability is vital, this integration provides staffing efficiency and gives clients peace of mind that their production databases are available 24 X 365.

The dbaDIRECT ONguard process blends automated procedures, operational intelligence, technical expertise and proven technology as the infrastructure for dbaDIRECT’s remote database management services. dbaDIRECT uses this process to provide a predictive and deep approach to systems management and delivers full dba services that go beyond the typical high-level “monitoring and reporting” approach. By also performing database restoration, recovery, maintenance and proactive tuning, dbaDIRECT offers a comprehensive, practical solution that results in technology reliability, improved operational intelligence, and higher staffing efficiency for customers.

“ONguard represents the culmination of years of DBA production support expertise combined with state-of-the-art monitoring tools and integrated processes,” said Mark Vorholt, chief technology officer of dbaDIRECT. “Simply put, with dbaDIRECT ‘ONguard,’ our clients are protected from poor database performance and availability.”

dbaDIRECT provides proactive dba  monitoring, management, maintenance, and corrective actions via the Internet. The company’s unique business model combines the industry-proven dbaDIRECT ONguard process, a large team of senior database administrators (DBAs), and BMC Software’s PATROL^® management and monitoring tools. At a time when IT professionals are difficult to find and retain, and impeccable system reliability is required, this integration provides staffing efficiency and gives clients peace of mind that their production databases are available 24 X 365.

About dbaDIRECT ONguard
dbaDIRECT ONguard represents dbaDIRECT’s industry-proven database management process and is the global symbol for database integrity and service excellence. dbaDIRECT ONguard blends automated procedures, operational intelligence, deep technical expertise, and proven technology as the infrastructure for dbaDIRECT’s remote database management services. The symbol signifies that business-critical databases are being proactively monitored and managed for optimal performance and availability 24 X 365 by dbaDIRECT.

“As a dbaDIRECT service provider partner, we are now able to deliver 7 X 24 X 365 database management services, supported by a service level agreement, to our customers as a value-added service to our eBusiness web hosting offerings,” said Tim Campbell, vice president of sales for Broadwing Managed Hosting. “Our integration of dbaDIRECT’s suite of service provider offerings has resulted in fast time-to-value and enables us to extend our presence within the managed hosting market.”

“The dbaDIRECT suite of service provider offerings now gives our partners the opportunity to deliver dedicated, value-added dba  services to customers with a service level agreement in place,” said Brad Landstra, vice president of sales for dbaDIRECT. “Our partners experience rapid deployment and profitability by offering services backed by dbaDIRECT’s defined infrastructure, patented process, proven technology, and experienced staff.”

dbaDIRECT provides proactive remote database monitoring, management, maintenance, and corrective actions via the Internet. The company’s unique business model combines dbaDIRECT’s patented process, BMC Software’s PATROL^® management and monitoring tools, and a large team of senior database administrators (DBAs). At a time when IT professionals are difficult to find and retain, this integration provides staffing efficiency and gives clients peace of mind that their production databases are available 24 X 365.

“dbTECHtive for SQL Server allows our clients to see a “point-in-time” view of the state of their SQL Server environment to ascertain if there are opportunities for immediate improvement,” said Mark Vorholt, chief technology officer of dbaDIRECT. “For clients, who have not reviewed the technical status of some of their SQL Servers for a period of time, dbTECHtive provides a good benchmark of the overall condition of the environment.”

dbTECHtive’s unique capability to analyze and report the point-in-time condition of a database within 24 hours of connectivity places dbaDIRECT at the forefront of database management technology. The new service provides a comprehensive check-up on crucial database performance issues from physical structure, space availability, and index space allocation to backup, and recovery issues. dbTECHtive specifically identifies and documents potential problem areas that require attention.

The primary requirement to utilize dbTECHtive is system-level access to a MS SQL Server database instance. The product will soon be available for Sybase and UDB DB2 database platforms. dbTECHtive supports Unix or Windows NT systems and Oracle version 7.3.X or higher and MS SQL Server 7.0.

The partnership will provide dbaDIRECT the opportunity to expand its services by incorporating additional BMC Software products, such as Web DBA™ , and tools as part of its service offering. By year- end, dbaDIRECT plans to implement a number of BMC Software’s DataOne maintenance optimization solutions, including PATROL^® DB-Reorg™ , PATROL DB-Unload™ and PATROL DB-Import™ for Oracle. Additional BMC Software recovery solutions will be integrated into dbaDIRECT’s service offerings early next year.

“Integration of the DataOne ‘best of breed’ products will further advance our capabilities to provide world-class database administration services to our clients,” said Mark Vorholt, Chief Technology Officer, dbaDIRECT, Inc. “The DataOne solutions, integrated with our service, create a synergy that is greater than either the service or software independently—it’s a 1+1=3 for our clients.”

The new partnership will allow BMC Software to deliver enhanced value to customers by offering a comprehensive solution comprised of both products and services, designed to meet today’s tough database administration challenges. As a result, the partnership extends the reach of BMC Software’s family of solutions and enables users at all levels of the enterprise to maintain the availability of corporate data.

“With BMC Software’s twenty years of experience in the database industry, we recognize that dbaDIRECT is an industry leader with proven experience, and a perfect choice for partnership,” said Joyce Durst, vice president and general manager for the Distributed Data Management business unit of BMC Software.

By combining exceptional industry expertise with state-of-the-art technology and architecture, dbaDIRECT and BMC Software continue to offer world-class solutions that ensure optimal performance and availability of business-critical systems. Through these efforts, dbaDIRECT and BMC Software are teaming up to offer practical, comprehensive solutions that improve productivity and profitability.

dbaDIRECT utilizes its state-of-the-art infrastructure to assist companies with proactive database monitoring and support by delivering remote dba services over the Internet. The company’s unique business model combines BMC Software’s PATROL management and monitoring solutions, with a large team of highly experienced remote database administrators. This integration affords dbaDIRECT’s clients peace of mind that their production databases are available 24 hours a day.

About DataOne
DataOne is a solution family that includes more than 30 distributed database products targeting the areas of: SQL Development Tools, Change Management, Performance Monitoring & Tuning, Maintenance Optimization, Backup & Recovery and Business Information Delivery. Database platforms supported by DataOne solutions include Oracle, Microsoft SQL Server, DB2 Universal Database, Sybase and Informix.

About BMC Software
One of the world’s largest independent software vendors, BMC Software delivers the most comprehensive e-business systems management software with the fastest guaranteed implementation. This Service Assurance™ strategy enhances the availability, performance and recoverability of companies’ business-critical applications. Companies can use this management methodology to demonstrate their ability to deliver optimal service to their customers and partners by joining BMC Software OnSite™, a certification program which includes solution implementation and regular HealthChecks performed by BMC Software Professional Services.

dbaDIRECT’s Informant level of service monitors the production environment for hundreds of watchpoints including down server, space limitations, resource constraints, and long running processes. In addition, dbaDIRECT furnishes clients with trend reports, providing essential information for planning future resources.

“With databases handling increased transactions at a greater speed during the holiday shopping season, it is more important than ever for retailers to ensure that their business critical databases are up and running smoothly. Utilizing our experienced staff, proven processes, and innovative tools, we are able to provide real value by monitoring the database 24 X 365, ensuring availability of the production environment, and helping retailers avoid costly downtime.”

The combination of dbaDIRECT’s dbTECHtive and Informant services will prove to be a valuable solution to shopper-heavy e-commerce web sites. E-tailers are already preparing their sites to avoid the pitfalls and traffic delays of last holiday season. dbaDIRECT adds to the efforts in keeping e-tailers up and running throughout the holiday season by making an offer that is both effective and affordable.

dbaDIRECT utilizes its state-of-the-art infrastructure to assist companies with proactive database monitoring and support by delivering remote database administration services over the Internet. The company’s unique business model combines BMC Software’s PATROL management and monitoring solutions, with a large team of highly experienced database administrators. This integration affords dbaDIRECT’s clients peace of mind that their production databases are available 24 hours a day.

“This is another validation of our commitment to maximize the value of the PATROL^® products for our clients”, said Mark Vorholt, dbaDIRECT’s chief technology officer. “The thorough review conducted by BMC to gain the OnSite certification demonstrates that we not only use the PATROL solutions, but also have the operational expertise to effectively integrate these solutions into our service offering.”

“Business as usual won’t cut it anymore in today’s Internet-speed world,” said Wayne Morris, senior vice president of corporate marketing for BMC Software. “If companies are going to compete, they have to show that they are committed to providing proactive management of their customers’ applications, and that is just what dbaDIRECT is doing by becoming an OnSite member. BMC OnSite is the cornerstone for successful e-business initiatives.”

dbaDIRECT utilizes its state-of-the-art infrastructure to assist companies with proactive database monitoring and support by delivering remote dba  services over the Internet. The company’s unique business model combines BMC Software’s PATROL management and monitoring solutions with a large team of highly experienced database administrators. This integration affords dbaDIRECT’s clients peace of mind that their production databases are available 24 hours a day.

dbaDIRECT delivers remote database support for Oracle, Sybase, Informix, MS SQL Server and UDB DB2. Levels of support vary from providing monitoring, tuning and preventative maintenance functions across the database and operating system environment or for just one server. dbaDIRECT offers a new alternative for staffing needs at a time when experienced technology professionals are hard to find and integrates solutions into its service offering, ensuring consistency, quality and performance.